Today's matinee went well. Huge crowd that was very into it.The St. Petersburg Times review of our show is online. I'm referred to as "energetic." I feel anything but that right now, but I'll take it.or just read it here under the cutCopyright Times Publishing Co. Sep 10, 2005Some musicals are made for the big theater - Sunset Boulevard, The Phantom of the Opera and Starlight Express come to mind.Others are just right for small venues - I Do! I Do!, Smokey Joe's Cafe, Dames at Sea, to name a few.Then there's a big show that works best in a small theater: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Andrew Lloyd Webber's whimsical interpretation of the Old Testament story of Jacob's son Joseph and his 11 jealous brothers, being done to a fine turn weekends though Sept. 25 at the cozy Richey Suncoast Theatre.Interestingly, Joseph is even more heartwarming and enjoyable with a liberal sprinkling of pure amateurs in the cast.Richey Suncoast has reached the near-perfect balance: professional singers playing the two leads, soprano Stefani LaPorta as a sincere and loving Narrator telling the story to a group of cute kids, Darrell Huling as a handsome, spirited Joseph, and a host of competent performers whose engaging charm more than makes up for any lack in singing prowess.The tone is set when the curtain opens on the silver-haired family patriarch Jacob (Phil VanDerlofske) lounging in a beach chair, big shades propped on his nose, as his Bible-era, robe-clad sons and their wives fawn over him.Enters Jacob's favorite son, an arrogant but attractive Joseph, who is warmly embraced by his father, even as his brothers and their wives grind their teeth. Joseph rubs it in; not only is he favored by their father, who gives him a gold-lined coat of many colors (Joseph's Coat), he is also favored by God, who is going to make him ruler over his brothers (Joseph's Dreams). So it's no surprise his brothers attack him, dump him in a well (Poor, Poor Joseph), then sell him to slave traders headed to Egypt and lie to their father in a cowboy-tinged country song, One More Angel in Heaven, led by a biker-looking brother Simeon (Jim Poe), that Joseph was killed wrestling a goat.This sounds scary and violent, but as done by Webber - and it could only be done this way because everything turns out fine - the scene is cute and funny.In fact, the show is so sweet and upbeat that, despite its unhappy familial story, it can be enjoyed by kids as much as grownups. Indeed, young actors (Chelsey Freeman, Julia Rifino, Erikka Lieberman, Kelly Lewis, Brianna Martin, Mikayla Pecora, Hannah Hall, Emily Chastain and Caitlin Ramirez) are an integral part of the play, as the narrator tells them the story in simple terms, and they often join the revelries on stage.The show is one long bright moment, but many stand out: Brother Reuben (Drew Lundquist) leading his brothers in a lament about Those Canaan Days as though they all were drinking buddies in a French bistro; a hip Pharaoh (Scott Van Scoyk) in a surprising outfit that would be even funnier if it were covered by a regal robe until Joseph enters and kneels before him; a jittery Butler (Keith Surplus in still another fine performance) sharing a jail cell with Joseph; a vamping Mrs. Potiphar (Ginger Ramsey); an energetic Levi (Timothy Burke) singing a sprightly Benjamin Calypso; and Huling's Joseph singing a moving, pitch-perfect Close Every Door, as he languishes in prison, and an angry Who's the Thief?, when he later gains power and tricks his duplicitous, but contrite brothers.The relatively short musical (one hour, 45 minutes, including intermission) moves quickly, thanks to good direction by Judy Poplawski, who also designed the quickly changed set pieces. And those pieces are stunners, as painted by artist Phil Hombledal.Special kudos to music director Joan Geschke, whose eight-piece orchestra keeps a fine pace and to choreographers Kristin Bram, Jeanine Martin and Jessica Martin, who had the stage swirling with precision movement. Also impressive are the scores of costumes by Poplawski and Jeanine Martin.IF YOU GOJoseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, a musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, continues weekends through Sept. 25 at Richey Suncoast Theatre, 6337 Grand Blvd., New Port Richey. Shows are at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. Sundays. Tickets are $15. Box office is open 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and an hour before each show. Call (727) 842-6777.
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