Rock of Ages

Ahh, the eighties!  The decade in music where the guys had longer hair than the girls and if your rock band didn't have a power ballad or a hard driving anthem, no one was gonna listen.  The time of free-wheeling, dirty fun was about to come to an end.  City officials were discovering that cleaning up their streets and catering to the wealthier citizens and tourists would make them more money.  Love was also in the air, amongst the sweat and drugs but, it was a hard thing to find.  You had to watch the band's lead singer to make sure he didn't lure your girl into the bathroom.  All of this is the basis for Rock of Ages, the musical that has been playing the Brooks Atkinson Theatre since March of 2009.

I didn't experience any of this stuff in the 80s because I didn't even reach my teens until the next decade but, I do remember the music from that time.  Every power ballad and rock anthem was such an "important" expression of love and rebellion that even now, you can't help singing along and/or moving your to the beat.  The music is, for me,  the main draw to the show and the biggest star.

It kind of feels like someone said, "This is the music of my decade.  Let's build a show around it."  And that's what they tried to do.  If you want the full synopsis, you can read it here.  Chris D'Arienzo has written a book that incorporates all the songs well and has some funny moments but, doesn't really give any weight to the multitude of plots going on.  Are we focusing on the club's possible closing, the relationship between Drew and Sherrie or... oh wait, they're singing Styx so who cares?

The set, costumes, lights and sound were done by, respectively, Beowulf Boritt, Gregory Gale, Jason Lyons and Peter Hylenski.  Each of them do their jobs of transporting you to that dirty little bar on the Sunset Strip in 1987.  I think the design team here worked hard and did a great job of getting the details just right.

Kristin Hanggi and Kelly Devine take on the tasks of directing and choreography for the show.  They both do well at keeping the action going so as not to get boring.  The dancing certainly had that "music video writhing on the hood of a car feel" although, it did get a little repetitive after a while.

Other than the music, the best thing in the show is definitely the cast.  They're all busting their butts on the stage and look like they're having a great time doing it.  There were some clear standouts for me.  Adam Dannheisser was great as Bourbon Room club owner Dennis. Michelle Mais showed off her powerful vocals as Venus Club owner Justice.  And Derek St. Pierre as the effeminate Franz, took a one-note role and stole the show.  

Unfortunately, these great performances from the featured players overshadowed our two romantic leads, Joey Taranto and Ericka Hunter (in for Emily Padgett) who played, Drew and Sherrie.  Both had the great voices that were needed for the music but, I wasn't all that interested in them.  Although, I think that's more the story's fault than the actors.  But, I kept wanting to see more from the supporting characters and not the ones I was supposed to be rooting for.

And maybe that was my problem with the show.  The music was great, the cast was great and having fun but, there was so much going on that I didn't get chance to care about the central plot.  Or WAS it the central plot?  And did it even matter?  I'm really not sure but, I don't think the main characters are supposed to be the least interesting thing in a show.  I will say though, it was a blast and the audience loved it!  You definitely won't find anything else like it on Broadway right now.

Until next time...