Date: Fri 16-Jul-1999

Publication: Bee

Author: SARAH

Quick Words:

Richter-Carousel-Squiers-Kohl

Full Text:

THEATRE REVIEW: Musicals At Richter Comes Up With A Treasure

(with cut)

By Julie Stern

DANBURY -- According to the playbill for Musicals at Richter's production of

Carousel , Deirdre Alexander is the director, choreographer and set designer,

yet the program notes tell us nothing about who she is. That is unfortunate

because Ms Alexander has created a spectacular, not-to-be-missed extravaganza

that deserves to run for far more than the three weeks in July it is slated

for.

Of the great Rogers and Hammerstein musicals, Carousel is perhaps not as

popular of familiar as some of the duo's others, like The Sound of Music or

The King and I. Mention it and people disclaim any knowledge of it at all

until you ask "But you don't you know `You'll Never Walk Alone' or `June is

Bustin' Out All Over?'" and of course they do. As with so many Rogers and

Hammerstein shows, the songs have achieved immortality on their own.

But the book the musical is based on is important as well. Set in a nameless

New England coastal town between 1873 and 1888, this story of Julie Jordan and

Carrie Pipperidge, best friends who work in the mill, explores two very

different sides of the American dream: romantic passion and independence vs

upward mobility and economic success.

Julie, the romantic heroine, gives her heart to Billy Bigelow, the dashing and

reckless barker for the carousel at the local amusement park. Throwing caution

to the wind, Julie marries Billy, even though this will cost both of them

their jobs.

Meanwhile the practical Carrie accepts the proposal of Mr Enoch Snow, a

fisherman with big plans for a fleet of boats, a herring cannery and a family

big enough to spend all the money that can be made. After a while, Carrie

observes, she won't even mind the smell of fish...

Under the stress of poverty, Billy drinks, loses his temper and knocks Julie

around. None of this alters her love for him, but when she gets pregnant, his

desperate resolve to get some money -- to "find it or steal it or take it...

or die" -- leads to tragedy.

Starting with a very talented cast, Director Alexander has not only done

justice to the music and revived the original Agnes DeMille dance sequences in

a meaningful way, but using an ensemble of some three dozen young people and

the nearly infinite resources of Dee and Don's Costume Closet to change them

from sailors and carnival toughs to villagers at a clambake to school children

at an eighth grade graduation, she successfully evokes the spirit of time and

place in a way that captures the spirit of a town -- the friendships, the

summer amusements, the cruelties and kindnesses that tie a community together.

As Julie Jordan, Priscilla Squiers demonstrates once again that she is

probably the most gifted actress in the area. She is well matched in David

Roth's portrayal of Billy, who looks a bit like Tom Cruise and behaves like a

temperamental Sean Penn.

Betsy Kohl combines a powerful voice with an infectious giggle in the comic

role of Carrie, who gets exactly what she wants in Donald Leona as the pompous

but tender-hearted Enoch Snow.

Ray Stephens is sly and sinister as the evil Jigger Craigin, who lures the

impulsive Billy down a deadly path.

To sum it up, the cast is so well directed, and the show is so well paced,

from the opening Carousel Waltz prelude through every hornpipe and dream

sequence, that there is not one false moment.

Carousel is an American treasure. Take the family and catch this while you

can.

(Musicals at Richter will continue its production of Carousel with weekend

evening performances through July 24. Call Richter's box office, 748-6873, for

ticket details and reservations.)