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Urinetown has enormous stage-musical fun poking fun at stage-musicals. The plot revolves around a 20-year local drought that has resulted in a company town which requires its citizens pay to pee. It's capitalism gone bad, and the solution is to sing and dance. Commerce and politics get skewered for their corruption, the idealism of the hero, Bobby Strong (whom Colin James Cook portrays with determined innocence), and the heroine, Hope Cladwell (the fetchingly skilled Maggie Stahl-Floriano), is as savagely mocked. Little escapes the satire engine, and everyone has a great time shoveling in their own bit of satirical coal.
Matthew Wright as Officer Lockstock struts and poses while Betsy Kahl as Little Sally charms the audience with the big voice in the little body. Penelope Pennywise is reprised by Lenne Jacobs-Snively, who once again manages to get a real emotion into a character designed to be a foil. Her voice remains one of the most interesting on the Cleveland stage; what an actress!
Gregory Violand is snappily smarmy as Caldwell B. Cladwell – his "Don't Be The Bunny" is just as good this year as it was three years ago, as he makes businessmen look bad with a voice that sucks you in and the body language that gives you the icky shivers.
Patrick Carroll as Officer Barrel still can't catch a break. Carroll underplays the role and makes you feel just for a moment a subtle poignance.
Zac Hudak dances manically as as Hot Blades Harry, John Polk makes Senator Fipp the politician everyone thinks of when they think of corrupt politicians, and Sandra Emerick as Little Becky Two-Shoes is wonderfully annoying, at least to me.
In short (too late, I know), the show is excellent, the cast is excellent, and you’ll have an excellent time. And you don’t even have to bring change for the stalls in the bathrooms.
From Cool Cleveland contributor Marcus Bales marcusATdesignerglass.com
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