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Do blondes have more fun? Affirmative
"Legally Blonde' in Wilmington
Steve Cohen
Legally Blonde "“ the Musical doesn't aim to be serious or exploratory, so sophisticated theatergoers might pass it by. If you do, it's your loss. The show translates the perennial-popular 2001 Reese Witherspoon movie into a fast-moving, expertly executed entertainment with several witty additions and a catchy score.
I saw Legally Blonde on Broadway with the original cast, then in Philadelphia and this week in Wilmington's DuPont Theater, and I like it more with each viewing. The national tour, of course, eliminates large pieces of scenery, but Legally Blonde never was a show about the sets. Four chorus members have been eliminated and the band is down to two synthesizers and percussion, but we hardly notice the loss.
As in the movie, Elle Woods is a rich sorority girl who's dumped by her boyfriend and follows him from California to Harvard Law School, hoping to win him back. There she confronts rejection and anti-perky blonde prejudice, gains acceptance, finds a new romance and ultimately graduates with honors.
The cast is exceptionally good for a tour. Becky Gulsvig, who understudied the central character on Broadway, is vivacious and energetic as Elle, very similar to Broadway's Laura Bell Bundy. She's on stage for virtually the whole show, singing and dancing well, apparently fully recovered from a broken toe she suffered earlier this year. (Gulsvig got a more positive break, and her Equity card, when she appeared in a small part in Michael Ogborn's Baby Case at the Arden in 2001.)
Ken Land is excellent as the supercilious, arrogant law professor, and so is D. B. Bonds as the teaching assistant who befriends Elle and"“ no surprise"“ falls in love with her. Megan Lewis also is particularly good as a snobby bitch who undergoes a last-scene change of heart.
The show succeeds because it keeps the tone of the movie and adds witty repartee and some clever show-stopping moments. One is a courtroom scene in which the defense team questions a witness's sexual orientation, singing, "Is he gay or European?" The music is catchy, the lyrics clever and funny and the staging is sharp.
Another is a skip-rope scene led by Coleen Sexton as Brooke, the fitness guru who is accused of murdering her husband. Here the choreography is spectacular. Then there are scenes where a UPS deliveryman, in brown shorts, delivers packages. His strut literally stops the show"“ a clichéd phrase that here, for once, is accurate.
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I saw Legally Blonde on Broadway with the original cast, then in Philadelphia and this week in Wilmington's DuPont Theater, and I like it more with each viewing. The national tour, of course, eliminates large pieces of scenery, but Legally Blonde never was a show about the sets. Four chorus members have been eliminated and the band is down to two synthesizers and percussion, but we hardly notice the loss.
As in the movie, Elle Woods is a rich sorority girl who's dumped by her boyfriend and follows him from California to Harvard Law School, hoping to win him back. There she confronts rejection and anti-perky blonde prejudice, gains acceptance, finds a new romance and ultimately graduates with honors.
The cast is exceptionally good for a tour. Becky Gulsvig, who understudied the central character on Broadway, is vivacious and energetic as Elle, very similar to Broadway's Laura Bell Bundy. She's on stage for virtually the whole show, singing and dancing well, apparently fully recovered from a broken toe she suffered earlier this year. (Gulsvig got a more positive break, and her Equity card, when she appeared in a small part in Michael Ogborn's Baby Case at the Arden in 2001.)
Ken Land is excellent as the supercilious, arrogant law professor, and so is D. B. Bonds as the teaching assistant who befriends Elle and"“ no surprise"“ falls in love with her. Megan Lewis also is particularly good as a snobby bitch who undergoes a last-scene change of heart.
The show succeeds because it keeps the tone of the movie and adds witty repartee and some clever show-stopping moments. One is a courtroom scene in which the defense team questions a witness's sexual orientation, singing, "Is he gay or European?" The music is catchy, the lyrics clever and funny and the staging is sharp.
Another is a skip-rope scene led by Coleen Sexton as Brooke, the fitness guru who is accused of murdering her husband. Here the choreography is spectacular. Then there are scenes where a UPS deliveryman, in brown shorts, delivers packages. His strut literally stops the show"“ a clichéd phrase that here, for once, is accurate.
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What, When, Where
Legally Blonde. Book by Heather Hach; music and lyrics by Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin; directed and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell. December 1-6, 2009 at DuPont Theatre, 1007 Market St. Wilmington, Del. (800) 338-0881 or tour.legallyblondethemusical.com.
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