So you say there just wasn’t enough tap dancing for you in the Goodspeed Opera House’s current hit musical, Crazy for You? Well you won’t have any issues, then, with the current revival of 42nd Street at the Sharon Playhouse. It is simply the tap danciest (is that a word?) show of all time!
Winner of the Tony Award for “Best Musical” in 1980, 42nd Street features a book by Michael Stewart and Mark Bramble, with lyrics by Al Dubin and Johnny Mercer and music by Henry Warren. It is a backstage Depression-era musical that wryly sends up the cliches of the tried and true “Let’s put on a show!” plot. Director Julian Marsh (Michael F. McGuirk) is planning his big comeback with a new Broadway musical when the young ingenue, Peggy Sawyer (Gabi Stapula), suddenly needs to step into the lead role when star Dorothy Brock (Savannah Stevenson) breaks her ankle. The show offers a boatload of classic songs including “You’re Getting to be a Habit With Me”, “We’re in the Money”, “I Only Have Eyes for You”, “Lullaby of Broadway”, “Shuffle Off to Buffalo” and the tappy title tune.
Sharon is offering a solid production of this popular musical but, for me, it falls under the category of being just good enough to make me wish it was a little better. Director Carl Andress has a game company at his disposal, but everyone seems more performative than invested in the sly satire the show demands. This is particularly true of McQuirk who gets Julian Marsh’s bluster right, but always seems to be holding back a little, and he also comes off as a little creepy. Stapula is a terrific hoofer, but Stevenson seems far too toned and youthful to play the over-the-hill Brock, though she sings a dreamy duet with Stapula of “About a Quarter to Nine”.
The voices and dancing are almost always terrific at Sharon. Choreographer Amy Van Norstrand is clearly up to the demands of a show where taps are tops, especially in the title song, still a thrilling 11 o’clock number here. Ian Black’s smooth-talking Billy Lawlor has a winning stage presence and sells songs like “Dames” and “I Only Have Eyes for You” with his glorious tenor voice.
The scenic design by Christopher and Justin Swader is a little lackluster in the glitz department, and I missed seeing the train in “Shuffle Off to Buffalo”, which is performed dully in front of a curtain. However, Kathleen Deangelis’s costume design gets it all right, as does Wheeler Moon’s shimmering lighting. All told, this will be a fun summer night’s entertainment for most audiences.
42nd Street continues at the Sharon Playhouse, 49 Amenia Road in Sharon, Connecticut through August 9. For further information visit: www.sharonplayhouse.org or call the box office at: 860.364.7469.
Tom Holehan is one of the founders of the Connecticut Critics Circle, a frequent contributor to WPKN Radio’s “State of the Arts” program and the Stratford Crier and Artistic Director of Stratford’s Square One Theatre Company. He welcomes comments at: tholehan@yahoo.com. His reviews and other theatre information can be found on the Connecticut Critics Circle website.
