Category Archives: Lil’ Abner
Look, Ma! I’m on YouTube!
There’s very little video footage of the work I’ve been doing, but here’s a video (with very little footage of me. What? I’m nothing if not consistent.) Enjoy some of my best ensemble work!
Mercury Summer Stock 2010
0:05
0:56
1:29
Lil’ Abner Reviewed! (3)
by Christine Howey – Rave and Pan
Ignorant rubes in hick towns seem to be endlessly amusing to us city folk, and that’s what drove Al Capp’s Li’l Abner comic strip to unprecedented success: 43 years in syndication. About 20 years after it began, the strip was turned into a Broadway musical that opened in 1956, and ran for almost 700 performances.
Now, Mercury Summer Stock is presenting Li’l Abner in all its cartoonish glory, and the production is a sublime example of how to turn over-the-top characters into a fast and funny theatrical romp. Even though the singing voices in the leads vary in quality from good to somewhat challenged, Pierre Brault’s energetic and witty direction and choreography keep the play as intoxicating as a jug of Kickapoo Joy Juice.
The shit-kickers who reside in Dogpatch, Kentucky are all a few DNA strands short of functional, but they are possessed of an inherent honesty and goodness (at least, in Al Capp’s world). In the book by Norman Panama and Melvin Frank, these yokels are being evacuated by the US Guv’ment since their burg has been confiscated, identified as the least necessary place in the country and a likely target for atom bomb tests.
As the residents deal with that threat (or is it a compliment?), local hunk Abner is being pursued by the luscious Daisy Mae, a process overseen by Abner’s dotingly dense parents Mammy and Pappy Yokum. Meanwhile, Mammy’s secret elixir, which turns an ordinary man into an Adonis, is fought over by a government scientist (Ryan Bergeron in a fright wig) and the evil corporate titan General Bullmoose (a blustering James Mango).
Not since Dickens has any writer come up with more telling names for his characters, and this musical has them in spades—from Senator Jack S. Phogbound (run the first name and middle initial together when you say it) to Earthquake McGoon (a doltish Daisy Mae suitor), and from Evil Eye Fleagle to Appasionata von Climax (no descriptions necessary).
Although Abner’s supposed to be as dumb as a wet log, Jason Leupold plays him as a slightly distracted frat boy. But he sings well and has the physique to carry off the part. As Daisy Mae, Annie Hickey is plenty attractive and handles her musical chores with style. Though there could be more confused sexual chemistry between the two, you still root for their eventual bonding.
Much of the production’s entertainment value comes from Mammy and Pappy, who are played with exuberant foolishness by Kelvette Beacham and Brian Marshall. Beacham is far from the short and scrawny Mammy of the strip, but she swings her weight like a sledgehammer as she whips her family into line. And Marshall, constantly bent at the waist, motors around the stage like the Energizer bunny on crack.
In the central role of Marryin’ Sam, the preacher who deals in $2 weddings, Dan DiCello nails a number of laugh lines. And he leads the company in a rousing anthem to the incompetence of town founder, “Jubilation T. Cornpone.” But he struggles with some songs, particularly his duet with Daisy Mae, “I’m Past My Prime.”
A number of smaller roles sparkle, such as understudy Ryan Thompson as Eagle Eye Fleagle—pitter-pattering across the stage in a stoop-shouldered posture, he actually seems animated. Sarah Saddler is voluptuous as Appasionata, and Tim Allen masters a variety of comic strip stances as Available Jones. Indeed, the large cast is either quite good or exceptional from top to bottom.
Director Brault never lets the timing flag, which is critical in such a wildly exaggerated piece. And the production is augmented by Margaret Ruble’s costumes, a glorious mélange of hick chic.
If you’re longing for a funny evening that won’t tax your brain, take a slug of Li’l Abner and wait for the giggles to start.
Li’l Abner Reviewed (2)
‘Li’l Abner’ Cute but Lacking at Mercury Summerstock
This month the U. S. Postal Service issued it’s “funnies” series. The stamps honor the likes of Archie, Dennis the Menace, and Calvin and Hobbes. Unfortunately, missing from the list are two comic strips that led to Broadway musicals: Little Orphan Annie and Li’l Abner. A version of the latter is now on stage at Mercury Summer Theatre.
‘LI’L ABNER,’ with book by Norman Panama and Melvin Frank, music by Gene De Paul, and lyrics by Johnny Mercer is a satirical look at the inhabitants of Dogpatch, USA (Kentucky). The comic strip, written and drawn by Al Capp, ran from August 13, 1934 through November 13, 1977. The Broadway production, directed and choreographed by Michael Kidd opened on November 15, 1956 and ran for 693 performances. The somewhat dated musical is a spoof of hillbillies but also points zingers at the incompetent federal government, corrupt politicians, and perceptions of masculinity.
Just before the traditional Sadie Hawkins Day race when Daisy Mae is again “yurnin’ to ketch” the handsome, muscle bound, emotionally void Li’l Abner, Dogpatch is declared the “most unnecessary town” in the U.S. and is set to be turned into a nuclear testing site. The only thing that will save it is to locate something that makes the area a national treasure. Of course, in the end, as is true of all musical spoofs, things “turns out fer the best.”
Besides Li’l Abner, whose family name, “Yokum,” cartoonist Al Capp conjured up by combining “yokel” with “hokum,” and Daisy Mae, she who gave the signature name to short-shorts, all the well known comic strip’s characters are present including Mammy and Pappy Yokum, Marryin’ Sam, Earthquake McGoon, Evil Eye Fleagle, General Bullmoose, Stupefyin’ Jones and Senator Phogbound. The original Broadway cast starred Peter Palmer in the title role, Edie Adams as Daisy Mae, and the marvelous Stubby Kaye as Marryin’ Sam. A film based on the stage musical was released in 1959, with most of the Broadway cast reprising their roles.
The clever words and the catchy music include “A Typical Day,” “If I Had My Druthers,” “The Country’s in the Very Best of Hands,” and the cute ballad, “Namely You.”
The Mercury production, under the direction of Pierre-Jacques Brault, has many creative moments and some right-on performances. However, to make this show work, the staging and attitude must be one of comic strip level farce and attitude. No tongue and cheek here. Out-and-out comic mayhem must let loose, as was the case with the Broadway production. Unfortunately, though the performers try, the Mercury cast just doesn’t make the show explode.
When I saw the show in the Big Apple, my feet were constantly tapping and I had a feeling of total glee. In the Mercury production I smiled and appreciated the many creative moments conceived by Brault, but I wanted more. I wanted more of what Brian Marshall created with his over the top Pappy Yokum. Though they gave good performances, I still wanted even more exaggeration from Kelvette Beachman as Mammy Yokum and Dan DiCello as Marryin’ Sam. We needed a more stupefying Stupefyin’ Jones and more macho braggart Earthquake McGoon. Why did Evil Eye Fleagle, whose quirky actions were well developed by Jonathan Ramos, have a Russian accent? Capp said of the character, “The zoot suit-clad Fleagle was a native of Brooklyn, and his burlesque New York accent was unmistakable.”
Jason Leupold has the face, hair, height and the singing voice for Abner, but he lacked the physique and vulnerable manhood. Leupold gave us sweet boyhood. Annie Hickey had the Daisy Mae look, except for the ill coifed wig. Her voice was a little shallow but she developed a charming rendition of “I’m Past My Prime,” with Marryin’ Sam. The male chorus sang and danced well, but didn’t fit the part of super studs when they were supposedly transformed into Abner-duplicates by Mammy’s potion.
Fun numbers were “Jubilation T. Cornpone” and “Progress Is the Root of All Evil.” On the other hand, “The Sadie Hawkins Day Ballet” went on and on and on, wearing out the cast and the audience.
As usual, Musical Director Eddie Carney did a great job of keeping his well-tuned orchestra under control so they backed up, rather than drowned out the singers.
CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: Mercury’s ‘LI’L ABNER’ is a pleasant evening of diversion, but could have been so much more fun if it had been played even broader and the cast had really let loose.
Lil’ Abner Reviewed!
Li’l Abner Balances One-Note Comedy and Satire
Scheduling “Li’l Abner,” a 54-year-old show based on a depression-era comic strip, seems an odd choice. Al Capp’s classic strip was, in its day, deeply topical — and more than a bit subversive.
Can satire firmly rooted in The ’50s still resonate and entertain us today? In Mercury Summer Stock’s production, running at The Brooks Theatre at The Cleveland Play House through July 24, the answer is mostly yes.
Under its veneer of hillbilly corn and cardboard characters, “Li’l Abner” lampoons an incompetent U.S. government, corrupt politicians, science gone amok, and the general absurdity of human nature itself.
Filled with characters bearing monikers like Sen. Jack S. Phogbound and Appassionata Von Climax, the show cleverly walks the tightrope between inch-deep comedy and thoughtful satire.
The plot twists and turns around the effort to save Dogpatch (“the most unnecessary town in America”) from becoming a nuclear test site. Can the mystical powers of Yokumberry tonic save the town from destruction (and more to the point, save the townsfolk from having to get — gasp! — jobs)?
The cast brings unfettered joy to the production. In a star turn, Dan DiCello as Marryin’ Sam ignites his every moment on stage, and the ever-hopeful Daisy Mae is wonderfully funny as played by Annie Hickey.
Director Pierre-Jacque Brault has wisely seen that it’s impossible to overplay these characters, and his large cast has embraced the broad, cartoonish world. The odd exception to this is Abner himself, who is played more tepid Midwestern suburbanite than simple-minded hillbilly. But the affection between Daisy Mae and Abner, played by Jason Leupold, is sweet and effective, and Leupold’s strong clear voice carries the music with aplomb.
One of the hallmarks of Mercury Summer Stock is high-energy creativity, and on opening weekend, that creativity was displayed in spades. The cast and crew had to deal with a power outage, so they moved the show outside and performed under the fading sunlight (and eventually under car headlights). To see them adjust on the fly while not missing a beat was nothing short of amazing.
“Li’l Abner” stands as a highly entertaining example of musical theater that manages to breathe humor into the underlying satire.
Pictures – Lil’ Abner
A few production photos, courtesy of Eric Skarl of FineArts Photography
It’s a Typical Day
Full Cast
It’s a Typical Day
Brian Marshall and Kelvett Beachum as Mammy and Pappy Yokum
Rag Off’n the Bush
Alyssa Hostetler tosses Ryan Thompson like a spry little rag doll
Oh Happy Day
That’s me proudly donning drag AND a beard (Pierre made me shave after preview)
Lil’ Abner Opens at Mercury Summerstock
Mercury Summerstock presents Lil’ Abner
Book by Norman Panama and Melvin Frank
Music by Gene De Paul
Lyrics by Johnny Mercer
Based on the comic strip by Al Capp
Director: Pierre-Jacques Brault
Music Director: Eddie Carney
July 9, 10, 14, 15, 16, 17, 21, 22, 23, and 24 at 7:30pm
at the Brooks Theater at the Cleveland Playhouse
8500 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44106
Brief Synopsis:
As Sadie Hawkins Day approaches, Daisy Mae hopes to win the hand of Li’l Abner by catching him in the traditional race. A senator comes to visit to tell the residents of Dogpatch that their town is to be used as an atomic bomb testing ground, unless they can find “something necessary” about the town. Could Mammy Yokum’s Yokumberry tonic (which Abner has taken every day since he was a baby) be the key?
Tickets:
$15 regular admission, $12 students and seniors
For reservations and information please call (216)771-5862 or through TicketLeap
Cast:
| Abner Yokum | Jason Leupold |
| Daisy Mae | Annie Hickey |
| Mammy Yokum | Kelvette Beacham |
| Pappy Yokum | Brian Marshall |
| Marryin’ Sam | Dan DiCello |
| Earthquake McGoon | Christopher Aldrich |
| Senator Phogbound | Christopher Fortunato |
| General Bullmoose | James Mango |
| Appasionata von Climax | Sarah Saddler |
| Available Jones | Tim Allen |
| Mayor Dawgmeat | Trey Gilpin |
| Stupefyin’ Jones | Elizabeth Bancroft |
| Evil Eye Fleagle | Jonathan Ramos |
| Moonbeam McSwine | Jennifer Myor |
| Romeo Scragg | Aaron Keen |
| Dr. Finsdale | Ryan Bergeron |
| G-Man | Joseph A. McIntyre |
| Ensemble | Kaitlyn Dessoffy |
| Alyssa Hostetler | |
| Courtney Hostetler | |
| Melanie Leibold | |
| Kate Leigh Michalski | |
| Kristopher Ray North | |
| Nick Rogers | |
| Ryan Thompson (U/S Pappy/Evil) |
