'Chicago' Rises Beyond Expectation in Garden Grove

Chicago Through June 12, 2011 $35 general admission :: onemoreproductions.com

One More Productions was on schedule to launch their most challenging show of the season, Chicago - the show was blocked, costumed, sound and lights programmed, ready for the final rehearsals preparing for opening the first weekend in June. Pre-show YouTube videos show the happy cast showing off the innovative costumes of Alex Navarro and the stage choreography of Shauna Bradford.

What they did not anticipate was a terrible tragedy that hit them in the very early hours of Memorial Day. An electrical fire wiped out their entire costume department, green room and created smoke and water damage throughout the historic Gem Theater in Garden Grove. Not only did they lose the outfits for Chicago, they lost all their costume accessories, sewing machines, cutting tables, and an extensive collection of sheet music and scripts. The technical and sentimental loss to the company is indescribable, enough to give even the strongest a pass to cancel the show.

But that is not how they roll... The next morning, they assessed the damage, got on their cell phones (the phone and Internet lines are still down at the Gem) and put out the call for help. Members of The Fullerton Light Civic Opera and Chapman College, among countless others, offered assistance with stitchers, sewing machines and materials. Costumer Navarro called the LA garment marts and reordered materials and in three days, with help from this tight-knit theater community, they recreated the costumes.

With the venue shut down, the company was fortunate to acquire the Festival Ampitheatre, located a block away from the Gem. This move required reprogramming the lights and sound, creating a makeshift dressing area and re-blocking the entire show. And, in keeping with Bob Fosse’s style, the costumes were really designed for indoor-use only; goosebumps were an accessory they were not considering, but the cast grinned and beared it on their rather chilly opening night on June 4.

On this rather chilly evening in June, the ampitheater was about two-thirds full, a good turnout considering the Gem is only 158 seats and this outdoor venue, which hosts the Orange County Shakespeare Festival in the summer months, seats over 400 guests. On opening night, Managing Director Damien Lorton expressed gratitude to his patrons and encouraged all of us to spread the word that the show must and will go on, as long as they have a venue.

Lorton described the extensive damage and the exhausting three-day journey it took to get to opening. The crowd cheered when he explained the support he received in the community and related how actors in Europe heard about the tragedy on Facebook and reached out to him. Lorton’s passion and determination is infectious, and it is clearly apparent that he is adored by his patrons.

With all this to consider, you would think there would be technical difficulties and flaws in the show. Absolutely none. You could feel the adrenaline and the determination and moxie from the cast and crew from the moment the show began, and the performance was pure perfection.  

Chicago is one of famed choreographer Bob Fosse’s signature musicals and considered a classic. It has been promoted and synopsized as “The HOTTEST show in town! Set in roaring '20s Chicago, chorine Roxie Hart murders a faithless lover and convinces her hapless husband, Amos, to take the rap... until he finds out he's been duped and turns on Roxie. Convicted and sent to death row, Roxie and another "Merry Murderess," Velma Kelly, vie for the spotlight and the headlines, ultimately joining forces in search of the "American Dream: fame, fortune and acquittal." The talented cast is supported by a 14-piece onstage band, together enthusiastically performing the 20 musical numbers in the show.

Girl power is exuded (evil as it may be) by the talented Nicole Cassesso, who brilliantly portrays Velma Kelly, Gretchen Dawson shines as narcissistic murderess Roxie Hart and stage veteran Beth Hansen is sadistically delicious as Matron Mama Morton. The sultry ensemble ladies are represented by talented triple-threat performers Gemma Hebson, Carly Taberski, Stephanie Zellhoefer, Rebecca Silverman, Peggy Magee, and Scarlett Brais.

This is a very capable cast, and all the ladies are wonderfully portrayed. Cassesso and Dawson are strong leads, but really share the stage with the other murderous gals, who we get to know in “Cell Block Tango.” Hansen dominates in “When You’re Good To Mama” and adds great comedy with Velma in “Class.”

Their male counterparts include a great performance by Johnny Fletcher, who plays the self-serving, self-promoting attorney Billy Flynn, Tim Klega as the passive loser Amos Hart, Daniel Filippi as the interrogating Sergeant Fogarty, and Roxie’s murdered lover is portrayed in flashback by Danny Diaz. “The Boys” are James Pettit, Charlie Bostwick, Danny Diaz, and Daniel Fillipi. Topping off the cast as the sentimental reporter Mary Sunshine is Daniel Berlin.

Standout male performances really go to Klega, who delivers a superb rendition of “Mr. Cellophane” and Berlin, who adds to the satire with his splendid portrayal of the cross-dressing Mary Sunshine, who is ultimately outed by Flynn.

Making his design debut, under the tutelage of his mentor, the Gem’s head costumer, Aja, is Navarro. A student at Cal Arts, this young designer showed incredible fortitude by designing the costumes twice (he lost all of his patterns in the fire) and they are wonderful indeed - inventive, modern, sexy, and clever, and a great nod to Fosse. Navarro told me if he had budget and time, he would have created some fabulous feathered creations for the scantily clad ensemble to keep them insulated during their outdoor numbers. Unfortunately, instead they had to huddle around a backstage space heater at intermission!

Hats off to Choreographer Bradford, Light Designer Jon Hyrkas, Sound Designer Dan Baird, Set Designer Wally Huntoon, Band Coordinator Jeff Segal, Makeup Designer Grace Egan, and of course, Director Lorton.

I witnessed an exchange prior to the show that really touched me. Lorton, a collector of brooches was approached by a patron and given a gift. It was a pin in the shape of the mythical creature, the phoenix. I think this will become the mascot for One More Productions and the historic Gem Theater. The enthusiastic ovation opening night expressed it all. Chicago is an impressive and entertaining show which rose out of the ashes and shined.