Well, I just got back from this afternoon's performance and folks, NOTHING could have prepared me for the unrelenting spectacle that is what Rockingham County people have done with Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's much-beloved take on the biblical story of Joseph and his brothers. The Theatre Guild's production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is bar none the glitziest and most over-the-top musical that I have ever had the pleasure of witnessing! The Guild could take this show on the road and it would sell out like mad (as it apparently did today). Someone said that you'd have to do hard drugs to see and hear as many colors and sounds as this show assaults you with! The production values are considerably more elaborate than anything you would probably expect from a community theatre outfit, and the effort from everyone involved was nothing short of enthused and inspired. The show is directed by Jay Smith, with musical direction by Dr. Anne Lewis and choreography by Stephen Hale. Playing the leads are Stephenie Sanders as the Narrator, Robbie Hendrix as Joseph and Wayne Hughes as Jacob. And I would be remiss in my duty as a blogger if I did not mention Chuck Owens' turn as Pharaoh: without a doubt the most electrifying Elvis impersonation in state history!
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat runs again on June 12th and 13th at 7:30 p.m. and on June 14th at 2:30 p.m. at the Advanced Technologies Building Auditorium of Rockingham Community College. Click here for more information.
Thanks for the write up Chris!
ReplyDeleteNo shameless advertising, eh Chris? :)
ReplyDeleteYou know, I wouldn't mind going. I really don't know how to get to Rockingham County, though. :/