Footloose
THE FIREHOUSE THEATRE
FOOTLOOSE
Music by Tom Snow
Lyrics by Dean Pitchford
Stage Adaptation by Dean Pitchford and Walter Bobbie
Based on the Original Screenplay by Dean Pitchford
Additional music by Eric Carmen, Sammy Hagar, Kenny Loggins, and Jim Steinman
Directed and Choreographed by J. Austin Eyer
Music Directed by Jason Philip Solis
My thoughts on Footloose or …you make me feel like dancing.
Footloose is 40, but who cares? Cause Footloose at the Firehouse is a “funtastic” good time with some unbelievably fantabulous high energy, high stepping choreography courtesy of Director and Choreographer J. Austin Eyer and a large youthful cast whose athleticism and enthusiasm are boundless. (Check out their bios above) Moreover, they are usually singing while doing all the right moves and sounding great thanks to Music Director Jason Philip Solis.
The story of Footloose is simple. A young guy, Ren McCormick, moves to a small town from Chicago. Oh no, it’s a town where dancing is banned! Ren falls in love with Ariel Moore whose father, Reverend Shaw Moore, is the very man who led the town to ban dancing. Think you can follow the plot? It doesn’t matter. The music is what Footloose is all about and the music here ties up the plot pretty well.
You will hear all the hits from the movie woven into the plot along with some serviceable, mostly forgettable, songs written for the play version. However, all of them are well staged by Director Eyer. Boredom is something you never have to worry about at Footloose as the pace never lags.
This Footloose is all about the beyond talented cast of singer/dancer/actors of whom there are so many that if I mentioned all their names, I would be writing until this time next week. Please know that you are all part of what makes Footloose the joy it is.
Leading the cast as Ren McCormick is Andrew Cave. Having seen Cave on stage before, it comes as no surprise to me that this charismatic young man could lead a show. What did surprise me was his dancing. Cave is exceedingly lithe and limber and has obviously had dance training. He’s a human Energizer Bunny, kicking, leaping, and jumping all over the Firehouse stage. Cave is also adept at the more intimate, romantic scenes and has a memorable duet of “Almost Paradise” with Ariel.
It’s almost impossible to take your eyes off of Summer Good as Ariel, and not just because she bears more than a passing resemblance to 80’s supermodel Cindy Crawford. Blessed with a fantastic voice, superb dancing and acting skills, and charm to spare, Good is a force on stage. Listening to her belt “Holding Out for a Hero,” gave me chills. My one suggestion for Summer is to change her surname from Good to Great.
One of the devices the play uses for storytelling purposes is a sort of female Greek Chorus. This terrific sounding group consists of Nicole Giddens as Urleen, Ambar Acosta as Wendy Jo, and Sarah Jo Adams as Rusty. Adams is especially outstanding in the featured role of Rusty and delivers some very good solo vocals. She is also quite good in her scenes with her “potential” boyfriend Willard.
And speaking of Willard, Max Rose is an absolute treasure as Ren’s “good old boy” sidekick. Rose is enormously appealing in the role, making Willard’s goofy, but somewhat wise, country boy a show highlight. I’ll have to quote my grandmother here and say that Rose as Willard could “charm the horns off a billy goat.” Rose is so incredible in this part that it is worth the price of admission just to watch him learn to dance in the “Let’s Hear for the Boy” scene and listen to him sing “Mama Says” a bit later on. What a find this young man is.
There is also some excellent work here from young actors Bridgette McFall, John Marshall, Karra Paulson, and Cam Hayes. They all play characters much older than themselves and do so convincingly. McFall, who plays Ren’s mother also has a lovely voice.
The only “real “adults in the show are real life husband and wife Hilary Evitt Allen and Kris Allen as Reverend Shaw Moore and his wife Vi. I have long been a fan of both Allens. I know that Hilary Evitt Allen is a master comic actor with a wonderful voice. Here she impresses with her tenderness and strength as Vi, longing to reconnect with her husband. Until this production, I have only known Kris Allen as an excellent director. I had no idea he was such a powerful actor and singer as well. He just about had me in tears in his final scenes of the play as the conflicted Shaw becomes a more accepting and forgiving man.
Footloose is the perfect diversion for a late spring evening. You will enjoy the spirited dancing and singing and all these wildly talented young people in Director Eyer’s cast. This Footloose really brings home the Bacon.
