{"id":3074,"date":"2012-09-16T22:11:10","date_gmt":"2012-09-17T05:11:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/?p=3074"},"modified":"2012-09-17T06:58:53","modified_gmt":"2012-09-17T13:58:53","slug":"the-great-american-trailer-park-musical","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/the-great-american-trailer-park-musical\/","title":{"rendered":"“The Great American Trailer Park Musical”"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Craig Miller, Julianne Lorenzen<\/p><\/div>\n

\u00a0\u201cThe Great American Trailer Park Musical\u201d at 6th<\/sup> Street Playhouse, Santa Rosa CA<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Reviewed by Suzanne and Greg Angeo<\/p>\n

Photos by Eric Chazankin<\/em><\/p>\n

Come for the Fun, Stay for the Shoes \u2013 <\/strong>\u201cTrailer Park\u201d an Irresistible, Raunchy Good Time<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s safe to say that 6th<\/sup> Street Playhouse has never featured pole dancers, dead skunks, agoraphobia, false pregnancies, and guys sniffing magic markers all on the same stage before. Well, there\u2019s a first time for everything, and this first – a risky little gem – really pays off big-time. \u201cThe Great American Trailer Park Musical\u201d at 6th<\/sup> Street is one rockabilly-rowdy, awesome show.<\/p>\n

\u201cTrailer Park\u201d premiered off-Broadway in September 2005, and has seen sold-out shows in regional performances all over the country ever since. Music and lyrics are by David Nehls<\/strong>, and the book is by Los Angeles comedy writer Betsy Kelso<\/strong>, known for her irreverent spoofs and somewhat risqu\u00e9 humor.<\/p>\n

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(From Left) Shannon Rider, Julianne Lorenzen, Daniela Beem, Alise Gerard<\/p><\/div>\n

Once settled in our seats at 6th<\/sup> Street\u2019s Studio Theatre, we find ourselves in a north Florida trailer park called Armadillo Acres, where the outdoor thermometer is stuck at 118 degrees. Their motto is \u201cWe accept almost everybody\u201d , and they aren\u2019t kidding.\u00a0 The park\u2019s little travel-type trailers (minus the wheels) are just like the residents: really very cute, but slightly smudged and dilapidated, bravely scraping the bottom of the barrel of life. Park manager Betty, and her cohorts Lin and Pickles, worry about their neighbor Jeannie, who hasn\u2019t left her trailer in 20 years. And now it seems like Jeannie\u2019s husband Norbert has taken to canoodling with the new gal in town, a stripper named Pippi. \u00a0When Pippi\u2019s slightly crazed roadkill-obsessed boyfriend Duke shows up with an impressive supply of magic markers, you don\u2019t need much imagination to guess what happens next. This is part of this show\u2019s lowbrow charm. \u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cTrailer Park\u201d is filled to the brim with non-stop laughs and relentless, high energy music, very much in the spirit of \u201cThe Rocky Horror Show\u201d. The characters could have stepped right out of a comic book. Sure, they\u2019re crude and vulgar, and maybe they play on broad stereotypes, but they\u2019re so likeable you can\u2019t help but fall in love at first sight. And the ladies wear the most fabulous collection of footwear seen in recent memory: sky-high glittery golden heels, thigh-high lace-up boots, acrobatic wedgies and scary-sharp stilettos. The shoes are nearly matched in tawdriness by the cheap-chic clothes and over-the-top hairstyles (all tributes to the talents of costume and wig designers Tracy Sigrist <\/strong>and Michael Greene<\/strong>). But these are mere accessories. What really makes this show is the stunning performers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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(From Left) Taylor Bartolucci DeGuillio, Daniela Beem, Craig Miller<\/p><\/div>\n

Each and every cast member is superb, a goldmine of North Bay talent. Betty, played by the truly amazing Daniela Beem<\/strong>, captures your heart with her spectacular voice, tacky wardrobe and unfailing concern for her neighbors. Also excellent is noted area vocalist Shannon Rider<\/strong>. She plays Lin (short for Linoleum!), the park\u2019s resident bad girl whose bad boy hubby is on death row. She prowls the stage, alternately squatting and strutting, seething with resolve. Alise Girard<\/strong> (also the show\u2019s choreographer) plays the charmingly goofy teenager Pickles. After using a pillow to fake her pregnancy, she produces a big surprise for everybody at the end of the show (Natalie Herman<\/strong> also plays Pickles for three shows, but we did not catch her performance). \u00a0Each of these ladies delivers exceptional individual vocals, but it\u2019s their three-part harmonies that really get the joint a-jumpin\u2019.<\/p>\n

Julianne Lorenzen <\/strong>is at the top of her game as the neurotic Jeannie, who can\u2019t make herself leave her dingy trailer ever since the day her baby was kidnapped long ago. Her character is less one-dimensional than the others, one you can identify with. She\u2019s sympathetic and real, and serves as the pivot point around which the other characters move. In such a demanding role, she not only needs to be funny; she needs to be dramatically strong and believable, and she is, with her wild hair and wilder eyes. And on top of all this, she has a beautiful singing voice. Her buffoon of a husband Norbert is played to clownish perfection by 6th<\/sup> Street Artistic Director Craig Miller<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

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Mark Bradbury<\/p><\/div>\n

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Jeannie\u2019s nemesis is Pippi, the sleazy but fiercely proud pole-dancer who moves into the trailer next to theirs. Taylor Bartolucci<\/strong> DeGuillio<\/strong> is outstanding not just in her vocals, but in her ability to make her character smolder with passion and heart. It\u2019s not long before Pippi\u2019s loony boyfriend Duke comes a-lookin\u2019 for his woman. Mark Bradbury\u2019s<\/strong> entrance nearly steals the show, which is really saying something. His nimble craziness as Duke, and in a couple of smaller non-speaking roles, provides the veritable icing on the cake.<\/p>\n

The four-piece band, directed by Lucas Sherman, <\/strong>is cleverly tucked away upstage, on the rooftop of one of the trailers. Each musical number seems better than the last, but especially memorable are: \u201cFlushed Down the Pipes\u201d featuring the ladies twirling plungers; the pulse-pounding disco beat of \u201cStorms A-Brewin\u201d; and the rousing finale, featuring a breathtaking solo by DeGuillio<\/strong>. The ingeniously compact set, including those cute little travel-type trailers, is the creation of set design wizard Paul Gilger<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Director Barry Martin<\/strong> delivers a home-run hit with \u201cTrailer Park\u201d. He told us he didn\u2019t want to give the audience a chance even to catch their breath, and he doesn\u2019t. There are no pauses between scenes (except for intermission) and the pacing is fast and furious. With his full use of the Studio Theatre\u2019s simple, open thrust stage \u2013 meaning there are views from three sides \u2013 Martin allows ample opportunity for the cast to mingle with the audience. You really feel a part of the story, and the fun.<\/p>\n

\u201cTrailer Park\u201d is what musical theatre is all about \u2013 pure escapism. You think you got troubles? Nothing compares with the back-breakin\u2019, heart-achin\u2019 comic strivings of these zany folks. It\u2019s been reported that shows are selling out in advance, so it\u2019s advised that you call ahead for tickets. But be forewarned \u2013 the characters are colorful, and so is the language. You may want to leave the kiddies at home.<\/p>\n

When: Now through September 30, 2012<\/strong><\/p>\n

8:00 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays<\/strong><\/p>\n

2:00 p.m. Sundays<\/strong><\/p>\n

2:00 p.m. Saturday, September 29<\/strong><\/p>\n

Tickets: $15 to $25 (general seating)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Location: Studio Theatre at 6th<\/sup> Street Playhouse<\/strong><\/p>\n

52 West 6th<\/sup> Street<\/strong>, Santa Rosa CA<\/strong>
\nPhone: 707-523-4185 <\/strong><\/p>\n

Website: <\/strong>www.6thstreet<\/strong><\/a>playhouse.com<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u00a0<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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