The sweet-country-bumpkin-trying-to-make-it-in-the-big-city
story is told all over again, but it’s actually fun. Although
utterly predictable, “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” now
running at the Ahmanson Theatre, takes audiences back to the
Roaring ’20s with great choreography, perfect costume
styling, and a few amazing talents.
The show, adapted from the 1967 movie of the same title,
keeps only two of its original songs; the rest, written
by Jeanine Tesori and Dick Scanlan, are new to the musical.
“Millie” invokes every classic musical trope in the
book, including sliding sets and ensemble dance pieces.
Darcie Roberts, who stars as Millie Dillmount, commands a great
performance as a brave little soul with a heart of gold. The
clichéd storyline is worked to the max, but comedic moments
and strong leads disguise this weakness a bit.
Interesting characters like the creepy villain Mrs. Meers
(complete with the worst Chinese accent since Charlie Chan) create
a sharp contrast with the wide-eyed Millie and her pretty
“Orphan Annie” girlfriends. The show’s leading
man, played by Joey Scorge, is charming, smooth and a hopeless
romantic. His character is played to perfection.
The six-time Tony Award-winning show runs flawlessly through its
storyline, as Millie faces the hardships of New York life as well
as the fun of violating prohibition laws.
The show’s setting might be the most interesting aspect,
placing Millie in a time when women were shortening their hair and
hem lines, and “Vogue” and “Vanity Fair”
were becoming their Bibles.
“Millie” toys with cultural dynamics by projecting
supertitles with tongue-in-cheek translations for the dialogue of
non-English speaking characters but stays away from addressing any
overt political issues.
Like any good musical, “Millie’s” focus is on
love and what crazy young fools will go through to have it. Silly
song sequences such as “I’ve Got It Good” and
“Forget About the Boy” drive the show’s sweet,
playful tone.
Unfortunately, the performance does not escape the tendency of
classic musicals to have overdone characters with irritating
voices. Diana Kaarina, who plays the overly saccharin Miss Dorothy,
hits far too high and squeaky notes. The abundance of pink frills
adorning her makes her look more like a gaudy wedding cake than the
adorable apple of so many eyes.
Still, good comedic timing and fantastic music and dancing give
the show enough pizzazz to distract from these small setbacks.
“Millie” is not out to take any daring risks or
challenge social roles, but it does remind audiences to relax and
have a good time.
-Alexis Matsui