Dysfunctional Fables – A Musical Cabaret
Dysfunctional Fables – A Musical Cabaret
By Sean Hartley and Sam Davis
Directed and Choreographed by Michael Rodgers
Musical Direction Luerne Herrera
Excellent Adventure Productions
Green Venue
Orlando International Theater Fringe Festival, Orlando, FL</strong>
A good musical doesn’t need a good plot, but it always helps. The folks at Excellent Adventures hang tonight’s music on some of the classic stories- “The Gingerbread Boy,” “Demeter and Persephone” and “The Three Little Pigs.”
We start with the buff and buttered Cookie Boy (Dexter Foxworth) looking to escape the fame, fortune, and groupies that Cookiedom thrust upon him. He’s chased hither and yon until the sneaky Mr. Fox (James Berkley) offers to transport him across the river to the Place Where Little Boys Can Play Safely. But, it’s a fairy tale, and no matter how politely Mr Fox waves his phallic tail at you, never trust a man in a sequined top hat.
In “Home Before Dark,” we see an adaptation of the Greek legend of Demeter and Persephone. Demi (S. Elizabeth Block) clings to her daughter Peri (Ame Livingston) and while a mother’s love can make you sing “We Do Everything Together,” a girl’s got to get out of the house sometime. Demi meets Hank (Foxworth) on line, and falls in love with him, only to discover he’s more possessive than mom. There’s an opera lurking here, but the writers cut it down to 5 tight songs and the great pickup line “You smell like Sprite and Daffodils.”
We wrap up with a retelling of the “Three Little Pigs” as a parable for the pre-bust New York real-estate market. The Bacon sisters Charlotte, Emily, and Annie are cast adrift when mom croaks, and one by one they fall into the arms of Lukas (Foxworth) who seduces them, drops the bodies in the river, and sublets out their semi-view condos. We close with the boffo blowout number “Beware of Very Charming Young Men.”
With the always tuneful Luerne Herrera on keys and a completely equity cast, this is a slick, zippy show with a whole series of unhappy endings. Best of all, there’s no fat woman singing at you.
This show is presented as part of the 17th Orlando International Fringe Theater Festival. Information on times, tickets, and venue location my be found at http://OrlandoFringe.org/</em</a>>
