Full Monty Review

Strong ensemble makes for an enjoyable 'Full Monty' Civic Theatre presenting musical based on movie

Friday, September 15, 2006
BY JENN MCKEE
News Arts Writer

The Ann Arbor Civic Theatre's production of "The Full Monty'' gets right to the point. So to speak.

For in this sweet, raucously cheerful musical's opening scene, a professional male stripper performs for a rowdy crowd of women, thus indicating right away that some serious man-flesh is going to be on display for the next few hours, so we had all better just get used to it. (And in case there was any question that the show is for mature audiences, expletives pepper the script, too.)

Adapted from the hit British film of the same name, with a book by Terrence McNally and music and lyrics by David Yazbek, "Monty'' focuses on a group of out-of-work steel workers in Buffalo. One of them, Jerry (Curt Waugh), stands to lose joint custody of his son, Nathan (Zach Pearlman), if he can't figure out how to raise money for child support soon.

While watching women flock to a local strip club, Jerry hatches the idea for a "real man'' strip show, starring himself and five other down-on-their-luck guys. When tickets for the show don't sell, Jerry ups the ante, telling everyone in town that his group, Hot Metal, will strip down to nothing.

The music in "Monty' is fine, if largely forgettable - it probably won't send you racing off to buy the cast album - and it usually works best when it's aiming for laughs. Jerry and his friend Dave (Kevin Stacy II), for instance, perform a darkly funny song ("Big-Ass Rock'') about the various manly ways they could help a depressed former co-worker named Malcolm (Andy Ballnik) kill himself; "Big Black Man,'' sung by Horse (David Velez-Felix), pokes fun at stereotypes and possesses James Brown-like spunk; and the musical's rousing closer, "Let it Go,'' humorously ratchets up anticipation for the show's moment of truth.

By far the most moving moment in "Monty'' occurs during the song "You Walk With Me,'' sung by Ballnik and Leo Babcock (Ethan) during a funeral scene; but the poignancy of this intimate moment happens almost despite the song rather than because of it, thereby pointing to the weakness of Yazbeck's ballads.

With a running time of nearly three hours, "Monty'' feels a bit over-long, but several strong performances make up the difference. As in the play's story, Waugh is the center that holds everything together, by way of his powerful voice and casual charisma. Likewise, all Waugh's fellow strippers - Stacy, Jeff Steinhauer, Ballnik, Velez-Felix, and Babcock - play their roles exceedingly well, making for a solid ensemble that will charm your socks off. (Maybe even more than that, given the nature of the show.)

Additionally, Linzi Joy Bokor and Kathleen Beardmore, playing two of the men's supportive wives, contribute impressive vocal performances, while Pat Persons and Jon Elliott, in a terrific scene, score big laughs during their brief appearances as woefully inept strip-show auditioners.

Set designer Mike Sielaff manages to evoke the musical's many, many different settings - no small feat - while choreographer Tawna Dabney generally imbues the dance numbers with vitality, matching appropriate movements to the emotional tone of each song. I occasionally struggled to hear lyrics over the orchestra on opening night, but this wasn't a chronic problem.

Like the characters in the show, director Wendy Sielaff goes full out with bawdy humor of "Monty,'' reveling in it rather than holding back.

Does that mean that the actors go the full monty? That's something you have to see for yourself.

"The Full Monty'' continues through Sunday at Lydia Mendelssohn Theatre, in the Michigan League (911 N. University Ave.). Tickets: $24 ($21 for students and seniors). Tickets are available by calling 734-971-2228, or by visiting www.a2ct.org. Reach Jenn McKee at jmckee@annarbornews.com