The 1962 Broadway hit \u201cA Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum\u201d was the first musical for which Stephen Sondheim wrote both the music and lyrics.<\/p>\n
Much of his unique style can be heard as Foothill Music Theatre presents this show, based on farces by an ancient Roman, Plautus (254-184 B.C.).<\/p>\n
Because it\u2019s a farce and because it has Sondheim’s music and lyrics, it\u2019s a challenge both dramatically and musically. Thanks to canny direction by Milissa Carey and Michael Ryken, who also choreographed the show, the comedic aspects work well.<\/p>\n
Some of the singing isn\u2019t quite as successful, but musical director Katie Coleman has made sure that excellent diction makes the intricate lyrics clear.<\/p>\n
The show opens with a great introductory song, \u201cComedy Tonight,\u201d featuring the central character, Pseudolus (Doug Santana), a Roman slave around 200 B.C.<\/p>\n
Pseudolus desires his freedom, but in order to secure it, he must help his master, Hero (Anthony Stephens), win over the beautiful new woman whom he has seen on the balcony of neighbor Marcus Lycus (Ray D’Ambrosio), a keeper of courtesans.<\/p>\n
However, the woman, Philia (Jessica Whittemore), has already been sold to a blustering general, Miles Gloriosus (Scotty Shoemaker), who\u2019s due soon in Rome.<\/p>\n
Other subplots arise in the book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart, several of them due to mistaken identities. All of these complications require Pseudolus to think quickly, which he does.<\/p>\n
Santana does an excellent job with this balancing act. Others who contribute to the fun are Todd Wright as Senex, Hero’s would-be philandering father; Jenifer Tice as his mother, Domina; and Mike Meadors as Hysterium, one of their slaves.<\/p>\n
Then there are the courtesans, who have the most challenging of Ryken\u2019s choreography. They are Vanessa Alvarez as Tintintabula, Evelyn Chan as Panacea, Sarah Hammer and Cami Jackson as the Geminae and Sara-Grace Kelly as Gymnasia.<\/p>\n
Many of Pseudolus\u2019s antics are witnessed by the Proteans: Jason Engelman, Marc Gonzalez and Kevin Reid.<\/p>\n
The set is by Kuo-Hao Lo, the lighting by Michael Ramsaur, the outstanding costumes by Robert Horek and sound by Andrew Heller.<\/p>\n
Running about two hours with one intermission, it\u2019s an enjoyable show.<\/p>\n
\u201cA Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum\u201d will continue in Foothill College\u2019s Smithwick Theatre, 12345 El Monte Road, Los Altos, through Aug. 9. For tickets and information, call (650) 949-7360 or visit\u00a0www.foothillmusicals.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The 1962 Broadway hit \u201cA Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum\u201d was the first musical for which Stephen Sondheim wrote both the music and lyrics. Much of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":46,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"yasr_overall_rating":0,"yasr_post_is_review":"","yasr_auto_insert_disabled":"","yasr_review_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[58],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-20105","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-judy-richter"},"yasr_visitor_votes":{"stars_attributes":{"read_only":true,"span_bottom":"