Back in 1980, Universal Pictures released a musical fantasy for cinema featuring songs performed by the Electric Light Orchestra and Australian pop diva Olivia Newton-John (who also starred in t the film.) In spite of the presence of Gene Kelly (in his final performance) and Newton-John’s post-Grease / pre Physical popularity, the movie was a critical and commercial failure. Retro fashion eventually gives everything a second chance, though. The bizarrely surreal Solid Gold-era, post-disco / pre-MTV 1980 musical has become popular enough to launch a contemporary live stage musical adaptation which makes its way to the Broadway Theatre Center this winter as The Skylight presents Xanadu. Kaitlin Feely stars as ancient Greek muse Kira who has come to Southern California in 1980 in the interest of helping a struggling artist named Sonny Malone. Mitchell Gray is fun as a lovable doofus spoof of the original character who falls hard for a woman on rollerskates who turns out to be a magical being. Sonny ultimately finds success while opening a roller disco named...Xanadu. In a fusion between the plot of the original movie and inspiration drawn from 1981’s Clash of the Titans, Kira’s life is thrown into chaos courtesy of her older sister Melpomene. Molly Rhode goes delightfully over the top in the role of the arch-villain. The music fuses Sonny’s boss (played by James Sloyan in the movie) with the classy, old Gene Kelly character into a single identity that is played with dapper style by Rick Richter. The design team on the show does a staggeringly good job of fusing together elements of early 1980s sparkly post-disco visuals that more or less perfectly nail the height of pop fashion in the year 1980. The retro 1940s that also make an appearance on the stage are particularly strong in a musical number that fuses swing music with early 1980s hard rock. Choreographer Stephanie Staszak did an exquisite job of bringing both dance styles together onstage in a musical number that works MUCH better onstage now than it did onscreen back in 1980. I realize that choreography for cinema is a completely different thing than putting it together onstage. And I know that a lot of it has to do with editing as well, but the 1980 film made the “Dancin’” dance number feel a bit odd and mechanical. Staszak does a staggeringly impressive job of juggling the 1940s with the 1980s in a strikingly memorable moment. Feely is a great deal of fun as Kira. The book leans pretty far into spoofing Olivia Newton-John. (And to be fair...a spritely, little Greek muse skating around with an Australian accent IS pretty silly.) Feely swimmingly carries cosmic comic cuteness across the stage with a delightfully exaggerated Aussie accent as she gracefully glides around on roller skates for much of the entire 90 minutes of the show. Feely’s irresistible energy carries the weirdness of a throughly enjoyable musical. The Skylight’s production of Xanadu runs through Feb. 11 at the main stage on 158 N. Broadway. For ticket reservations and more, visit the Skylight online.
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October 2024
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