THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 5, 1996 TAG: 9607040057
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E9 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Theater review
SOURCE: BY MAL VINCENT, THEATER CRITIC
LENGTH: 66 lines
``FIVE GUYS Named Moe'' is more a party than it is a show.
It has not five, but six guys who, joined by a six-piece band, are required to be as much cheerleaders as performers. Using the music of 1940s jazz virtuoso Louis Jordan as their weapon, they are making joy at the Dominion Theater (located in the Founders Inn in Virginia Beach).
Directed by Gary Spell, this show has enough energy to more than sell the almost-30 songs that are trotted out so quickly. If the show has a major fault, it is that the pace is nearly hectic. After all, it's OK to slow down for the ballads.
It's a small quibble, though. ``Five Guys Named Moe'' effectively uses its six performers' varied talents.
This Louis Jordan was the jazz great who dared to buck the big band era by touring with small combos. He wrote hit song after hit song; the most familiar of them are bunched in the second act of this musical revue, making it far too superior to Act I.
If you're in the know, you'll remember ``Caldonia,'' the girl who made her singer-lover wonder ``What makes your big head so hard?'' Then there's ``Ain't Nobody Here But Us Chickens,'' a little novelty-drama. ``Choo, Choo, Ch'Boogie'' is another stand-out, as well as the pointed query, ``Is You Is or Is You Ain't Ma' Baby?'' The best ballad of the night, and perhaps Jordan's best conventional song, is ``Don't Let the Sun Catch You Crying.''
There is no crying during this show. The ``plot,'' which is pretty nigh nonexistent, has the five guys named Moe jumping out of a radio to try and get a guy named Nomax to get hip. Nomax, played with appropriate naivete by Tracy Peele, has woman troubles. The five guys, through a couple dozen songs, set him cool.
First performed in a small theater outside London, the show was picked up by mega-theatrical producer Cameron Mackintosh, who presumably wanted to prove that he could do a small show after effectively marketing the chandelier of ``Phantom of the Opera'' and a French-style revolution in ``Les Miserables.'' It had successful runs in both London and New York, turning a conventional theater into a saloon setting complete with a whiskey-style bar in the theater lobby.
Founders Inn doesn't offer the bar, but it does, somewhat daringly for this venue, offer a boozy song like ``What's The Use of Getting Sober,'' as well as some racy philosophy about a low-down style of having fun. Perhaps Dominion Theater, which is now not affiliated, except in location, with Founders Inn is taking a new step in declaring its independence.
``Five Guys Named Moe'' doesn't do much to give its performers distinct characters. Their main differences are explained by no mo' than their names - Big Moe, Little Moe, No Moe, Eat Moe and Four-Eyed Moe.
Most consistently in character, as the big guy with jolly worldliness, is Royzell Dillard as Big Moe. A particularly adept tap number is contributed by Deon Ridley as Little Moe and Derrick Williams (who also choreographed the show) as Eat Moe. In fact, the tap show is so good that it seems a shame to waste these dancers on just one number.
This show faces notable risks in that its success depends, to some degree, on the crowd with whom you see it. The performers call upon the audience to participate, including a conga procession around the theater. Michael LeMelle, as Four-Eyed Moe, has a winning talent for ad-libbing with the audience.
There are ticketbuyers who resent performers who want to make THEM work. The five guys named Moe, though, are the hardest-working cheerleaders currently on any local stage, and dinner at the hotel's Swan Terrace is a nicely priced package that is designed to build up your energy for the conga line.
The show runs through Aug. 24. There is every indication that the cast is up to the task. by CNB