By Joanne Engelhardt
Palo Alto Players loves to produce technicolor musicals full of dancing, cute little actors, and a happy ending. That’s a good description of its current show, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, running through Sept. 22 at Lucy Stern Theater in Palo Alto.
Director Patrick Klein’s best move was to select the absolutely spellbinding Brandon Savage as his Willy Wonka. And though he’s supported by a winning cast of old and young performers and a live orchestra, this reviewer thought the production ran a bit too long with a few too many over-the-top projections.
But along the way, audiences – both children and adults alike – get to enjoy a gobstopper full of little treats like the short burst of breakdancing performed by tiny mite Ryan Segal or the diminutive and neon-wigged Oompa Loompas, who dance and sing delightfully.
Based on the 1964 book by British author Roald Dahl, Charlie has had many iterations since that time. In 1971, it became a motion picture called Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, and 33 years later, a highly successful film version (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) starred Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka.
But it wasn’t until 2013 that a musical version premiered in London and ran for more than three years. It was reworked in 2017 and opened on Broadway that year. That’s the version PAP is offering Peninsula theatregoers.
Opening night started off promisingly enough when PAP Managing Director Elizabeth Santana told the audience it was sitting on brand-new seats. While the seats are visually an improvement, they’re so hard that sitting on them for a couple of hours isn’t an entirely pleasant experience.
“…the Candy Man can….”
The overture began with the conductor enthusiastically waving his arms – but suddenly he left the pit and climbed up onto the stage! Surprise! It’s Willy Wonka himself who begins singing “The Candy Man” to start the show. That certainly got the audience’s attention!
But when Charlie Bucket (an appealing Russell Nakagawa) shows up and starts singing “Willy Wonka! Willy Wonka!” with the ensemble, his words were a bit overtaken by the orchestration. Happily, music director Richard Hall quickly got all into better form as the show progressed.
Nakagawa, who played Winthrop in PAP’s production of The Music Man last season, shares the role with Falcon Franco. (For the purposes of this review, Nakagawa is the Charlie being reviewed.)
As Charlie’s Grandpa Joe, Steven Guire Knight was the perfect foil for Charlie. It was a joy to watch him get out of bed – for the first time in 40 years!! – stretch his legs and join his grandson on this once-in-a-lifetime adventure.
When five “lucky” children find a “Golden Ticket” in their Wonka bar one real standout was Joshua Parecki as Mike Teevee. He and his “mother” Mrs. Teevee (an over-the-top Kristina Nakagawa) found small ways to scene steal themselves from the other parent-child couples.
This reviewer found that some of the rooms in Willy Wonka’s factory were fun to explore while others were a bit lukewarm. But the machine that ended up making Mike Teevee into a teeny-tiny person got a hearty laugh!
Savage does his best to keep a lot of balls afloat with his charisma and adroit actions. (He also makes a few quick costume changes offstage to play the owner of the local candy store where Charlie goes to lust after candy and where he eventually buys the special Wonka bar.)
One of the things that PAP does really well is create technicolor magic – and this production is no exception. Last Saturday’s audience – youngsters and adults alike – gave it a hearty standing “O.”
-30-
Aisle Seat Executive Reviewer Joanne Engelhardt is a Peninsula theatre writer and critic. She is a voting member of the SF Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle (SFBATCC). Contact: joanneengelhardt@comcast.net
| Production | Charlie & the Chocolate Factory |
|---|---|
| Written by | Roald Dahl |
| Directed by | Patrick Klein |
| Producing Company | Palo Alto Players |
| Production Dates | Thru Sept. 22nd |
| Production Address | Lucie Stern Theater, 1305 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto |
| Website | www.paplayers.org |
| Telephone | (650) 329-0891 |
| Tickets | $35-$60 |
| Reviewer Score | Max in each category is 5/5 |
| Overall | 3.5/5 |
| Performance | 4/5 |
| Script | 4/5 |
| Stagecraft | 3.5/5 |
| Aisle Seat Review PICK! | ----- |