THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, December 17, 1994 TAG: 9412160085
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E3 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Theater Review
SOURCE: BY MAL VINCENT, THEATER CRITIC
LENGTH: Medium: 88 lines
IF YOU'VE HAD enough of Ebenezer Scrooge and his multi-``Humbug'' adaptations and if ``The Nutcracker'' has been repeated too often in your repertoire, there is something new for the holidays. It's a musical version of two O. Henry short stories, ``The Gift of the Magi'' and ``The Cop and the Anthem.''
The Founders Inn Dinner Theater gets points for finding a new script rather than doing ``A Christmas Carol'' or other tired sugarplums again. To its detriment, though, the cast is barely adequate (and outright inadequate in some vocal categories). Also, the score and script are unusually complex - especially for so sweet and simple a plot.
Under the collective title of ``The Gifts of the Magi,'' the production is about a poverty-ridden young married couple who have no money for Christmas gifts. In the spirit of sacrifice, she sells her hair and he . . . well, he is involved in one of those surprise O. Henry endings.
The story has been dramatized often, including a movie version (``O. Henry's Full House'') in which Jeanne Crain and Farley Granger played the newlyweds. This musical version was first produced off-Broadway in 1984.
Woven, none too seamlessly, into the evening is the familiar plotting of ``The Cop and the Anthem,'' the O. Henry story about a down-and-out bum who only wants to get arrested so that he can have a nice, warm cell for the winter. He eats at expensive restaurants and fails to pay the bills, but no one arrests him. He even accosts a young lady, only to find that she is a prostitute, and it is she, rather than he, who gets a lecture from the cops.
The musical score, with music by Randy Courts and lyrics by Courts and Mark St. Germain, is surprisingly sophisticated for such a sweet Christmas concoction. ``Greed'' and ``Bum Luck'' are the two most accessible songs, but those expecting a sing-along of favorites will be bewildered.
The intricate lyrics are more than the cast apparently can handle. As a result, it pays to be aware of the simple plot before you enter.
The best thing about this production is J. Brian DeShazier's set, which makes imaginative use of limited space to suggest a New York street in 1905 (even if the street does somehow suggest London more than New York).
The best voice is that of Bonnie Eileen Lambert in the role of the newlywed bride. Kathi Caplan, as usual, lends character and flair to her bit as half of a narration team.
Any theater that strives for a professional reputation, though, should avoid such amateurish castings as having a girl play the all-important role of Willy Porter, the street-wise newsboy. (Jennifer Coker, who has the role, works hard to suggest male cockiness and comes across looking merely overly mannered). And one wonders why the youthful L. Derek Leonidoff would be cast as the old bum who wants to go to jail. Are there no mature character actors available?
However, apparently in the spirit of anything holiday will sell in December, the show is all but sold out for most December performances. Tickets are available for January performances through Jan. 7. Call 366-5749 for reservations and for special performances, which are being added to the usual schedule.
The bountiful holiday buffet, served before a roaring fireplace in the theater's adjacent Swan Terrace Restaurant, at the least, makes this a festive evening. (The inn's holiday decorations are quite awesome).
As theater, ``The Gifts of the Magi'' is worthwhile only as a rather curious musical adaptation of a familiar literary work. ILLUSTRATION: JOHN LOIZIDES
From left, Lewis Stark, Jennifer Coker and Bonnie Eileen Lambert
star in ``The Gift of the Magi'' at Founders Inn Dinner Theater.
THEATER REVIEW
What: ``The Gifts of the Magi,'' music by Randy Courts, lyrics by
Mark St. Germain and Courts; directed by Joe Burnsworth; musical
direction by Gary Spell
Where: Founders Inn Dinner Theater, 5641 Indian River Road
(Indian River Road East exit off Interstate 64)
Cast: Jennifer Coker, Lewis C. Stark, Bonnie Eileen Lambert, L.
Derek Leonidoff, David Frishinger, Kathi Caplan
When: Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, dinner at 6:30 p.m., curtain
at 8:15; Saturday and Sunday, dinner at 5:30 p.m., curtain at 7:30;
special matinees today at 5 p.m. (dinner at 6:30) and Sunday at 2
p.m. (brunch at 3:30). Through Jan. 7 (no Thursdays in January)
How much: $31.95 for dinner and theater, $19.95 for theater only.
Most December performances are sold out, but all January
performances are available.
Infomation: 366-5749
by CNB