Laura and Samara spend their days as non-profit unicorns and fill every spare minute exploring the world of musical theatre as BFFs (that’s Broadway Friends Forever). Follow @bffs613 on Instagram and Facebook.
Fans of classic musicals rejoice – Orpheus Musical Theatre has The Music Man on until June 8 at Meridian Theatres at Centrepointe. Winner of five Tony awards, including Best Musical in 1957, it was recently revived on Broadway with Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster, and was nominated for another six Tony awards, including Best Revival.
Professor Harold Hill and his travelling sales of musical instruments is more than meets the eye when he tries his scheming ways on the townspeople of River City. Hill wins them over with his persuasive charm and tongue twisting lines that keep most of them off his con man trail. When he learns there’s a librarian in town who may be on to him he tries to distract her, leading to inklings of romance starting to blossom. Things become more complicated than they originally seemed, and in the end will Hill choose to steal the townspeople money or steal their hearts?
Photo: Maria Vartanova.
This show is from a different generation of musicals, where there were beautiful overtures, entractes, large ensembles, dance breaks, and in this case, even a killer barber shop quartet. You’ll recognize some of the most well-known songs like “Seventy Six Trombones,” “Ya Got Trouble,” and “Till There Was You,” played by the stellar orchestra with music direction by Wendy Berkelaar.
Kodi Cannon embodied Harold Hill and was a powerful lead from beginning to end and Thea Nikolic as Marian brought emotion and connection perfectly balancing the smooth-talking Hill. The large ensemble was seamless, nailing choreography and vocals and clearly bringing to life the small town of River City.
Photo: Maria Vartanova
A key part in making a musical like The Music Man work is timing and transitions. Orpheus was able to move between sets and scenes quickly and effectively, maintaining the pacing and overall emotion of the show. This was one of Orpheus’ most outstanding productions and with a large cast it couldn’t have been an easy feat. From the set design to costumes, to choreography and live orchestra, let alone the cast – all the pieces worked together to create a beautiful high-quality production.
While classic shows aren’t everyone’s jam, this was undoubtedly the perfect groove for Orpheus. It was clear to see how much fun the cast was having and how that bled into the audience. Cheers and claps didn’t stop from the time the curtain opened until it closed. If you are a fan of the original show, or the movie remakes – this show is for you!
Grab your ticket and get all aboard Ottawa, the train’s next stop is The Music Man!
Orpheus Musical Theatre presents The Music Man at Meridian Theatres at Centrepointe until June 8 with 7:30 pm evening performances from Thursday to Saturday and 2 pm matinee performances on Saturday and Sunday. The show runs 2 hours and 30 minutes with a 20 minute intermission. Tickets range from $37 – $59.
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