Beck Center’s ‘A Chorus Line’ needs a little bit of help

One thing that can be said about the Broadway show “A Chorus Line” is that it has pedigree and pizazz. It began as a workshop project conceived by Michael Bennett before moving on to Off-Broadway. The show features music by Marvin Hamlisch with lyrics by Edward Kleban and book by James Kirkwood, Jr. and Nicholas Dante.

It eventually ended up on Broadway at the Shubert Theatre on July 25, 1975 under the direction of Michael Bennett with choreography by Bennett and Bob Avian. It was a hit right from the start getting twelve Tony Award nominations and winning nine as well as the 1976 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The original production ran for 6,137 performances making it the longest running Broadway musical until knocked off the perch by “CATS” in 1997.

On a bare Broadway stage 24 hopeful dancers are vying for eight spots (four boys and four girls) in an upcoming Broadway spectacular. Director Zach (Scott Sumerak) along with his assistant Larry (Nic Rhew) are putting the dancers through their paces gradually reducing the number to 17. In an effort to get to know the dancers on a more personal level Zach asks each dancer to introduce themselves along with where they are from, how old they are plus a little information as to their early years. This is met with a degree of shock as the performers are usually not asked such personal questions. This is, after all the chorus where animinity reigns.

One by one each dancer bares their soul telling how they got their start in the business and their earliest memories of dance classes. First up is Mike (Dakota Krouse) who grew to love dance by attending his sister Rosalie’s classes (“I Can Do That”). Bobby (Seth Crawford) is the class clown making jokes about his unhappy childhood. Sheila (Eliana Taub) brings her attitude and seems to take nothing serious but ends up telling about her mother (a professional dancer) who got married young and gave up her career. Sheila, Bebe (Bebe Moss) and Maggie (Andi Brooke Keller) recall how ballet helped them to escape their unhappy family lives (“At The Ballet”).

Ditsy and tone death Kristine (Kayla Peterson) laments about her inability to sing as her husband, Al (Jacob Anderson) completes her phrases (“Sing!”). Next is the youngest dancer, Mark (Randy Christopher Castillo) who relates his first exposure to the male and female anatomy leading up to his first wet dream that convinced him that he had gonorrhea in his early virgin teens. 4’ 10” Connie (Sabrina Maristela) complains about being short and the challenges of getting hired as the other dancers join in with their collective memories of adolescence (“Hello Twelve, Hello Thirteen, Hello Love”). Diana (Valeria Flores) recalls her horrible high school acting class (“Nothing”) as Don (David Lenahan) tells of his first job at a dance club.

Judy (Izzy Baker) reflects on her challenging childhood as others talk about weathering their parent’s opinions (“Mother”). Greg (Simeon Schmitt) reveals when he discovered his homosexuality as Richie (Jaheim Hugan) recalls nearly becoming a kindergarten teacher (“Gimme The Ball”). Newly altered Val (Abigail Sanford) reveals her secret of success through cosmetic surgery (“Dance: Ten, Looks: Three”).

As all of the dancers go down stairs to learn a song, Cassie (Julia Martin) stays behind to talk with Zach. She and Zach once had a relationship but she left to pursue her California dream and career only to have her insecurities get in the way. Zach feels that Cassie is too good for the chorus and should be auditioning as the star. Cassie simply wants to find work and is willing to start at the beginning once more (“The Music and the Mirror”). Lastly, Zach corners Paul (Jimmy Metz) for a private talk as the dancer reveals his early career as a drag queen, his facing manhood, his homosexuality and his parents reaction when they discovered his secrets.

During a run through of (“One”) Zach calls out Cassie for “dancing down” asking her if she really wants this (chorus work) to which she replies “I’d be proud to be one of them”. During a tap sequence Paul falls and re-injures a knee he had recently had surgery on. He is taken to the hospital as Zach asks the one unspeakable question “What will you do when you can no longer dance?” Diana leads the company in “What I Did for Love” and the final eight dancers are selected (Mike, Cassie, Bobby, Judy, Richie, Val, Mark and Diana). In the Finale all 19 dancers come on stage in their identical spangled gold costumes as their individual identities are lost.

First, the good news. The dance sequences by Christopher Chase Carter are fantastic and the costuming by Inda Blatch Geib are perfect for the actors individual personalities. The stage set is true to the original concept and the lighting design is used to feature the individual performers. The fifteen piece orchestra under the direction of David Robinson is a feast for the ears.

Then we come to the sound. Once again the Senney Theater sound curse raises its ugly head. Individuals are under mic’d to the point that it is a challenge to hear the lyrics, especially with the large orchestra behind them. With it being opening night it seemed that the entire cast had the yips as everyone seemed to be holding back. In a show known for its show stopping hits the Ah Ha moments never seemed to materialize.

Another problem is the length of the show. Billed at 120 minutes it actually ran over by ten or fifteen minutes on opening night. Quite simply, there are segments that could have been sped up as they dragged a bit. Considering the average age of the theater patron going this long without an intermission is challenging to the body and soul.

Hopefully the five week run can be improved with a turn of a knob to boost up the sound quality, a heart to heart talk with the cast on “putting it all out there on stage” and a quickening of the pace during the slow periods. Judging by the opening night audience reaction most in attendence seemed to appreciate the show but there is definitely room for improvemant.

The Beck Center for the Arts production of “A Chorus Line” will be on stage in the Senney Theater through August 10, 2025. For more information and tickets go to http://www.beckcenter.org or call (216) 521-2540.