Date: Fri 13-Oct-1995

Publication: Bee

Author: SUEZ

Illustration: C

Quick Words:

Jekyll-pre-Broadway-Shubert

Full Text:

(review, "Jekyll & Hyde" at Shubert)

THEATRE REVIEW-

Pre-Broadway "Jekyll" Thrilling!

(with photo)

By June April

NEW HAVEN - Sitting on the edge of the seat wishing the play wouldn't end,

then running to where the tape and CD of the show is being sold in the lobby

so the trip home would continue the magic of the music...this is the thrill

and the joy of Jekyll & Hyde , the smash opening at the Shubert Performing

Arts Center.

Anyone who has enjoyed Les Miserables will find this production at least on a

par, with as many memorabile musical pieces. The recording from Jekyll & Hyde

was available before the production was available to audiences. Winner of more

than 20 gold and platinum hits, Frank Wildhorn's musical score has already

spawned songs that will undoubtedly go on to become "classics."

They are not only wonderfully melodic, but they have substance. And for this,

credit goes to lyricist Leslie Bricusse.

If Bricusse's name isn't as familiar as Sondheim or Webber, his songs, in

well-received productions, certainly are: "You Only Live Twice," "Goldfinger,"

"Doctor Doolittle," "Stop The World...," "The Roar of the Greaspaint,"

"Harvey," and many, many more are living testimony to this man's genius.

The cast is sensational. One can only marvel at the extraordinary talent and

energy of Robert Cucciolo, who plays the dual lead. Before your very eyes,

this man changes from "good" to "evil." His voice, body, mannerisms...this is

acting! (And he sings like a Broadway Pavarotti.)

The two female leads, "Lucy," the loving prostitute played by Linda Eder, and

Christiane Noll as "Lisa," Henry Jekyll's devoted fiancee, both have glorious

voices that heighten the personalities of their characters.

The stage and story are charged with an electricity that keeps the audience

spellbound, except at the end, where there is wild applause and bravos.

The sets, by Vince Mountain, are very effective and with the creative lighting

by Howell Binkley, make an environment that always keeps a sense of

foreboding.

The costumes are delicious and original, and should be awarded top honors at

the Tony Awards. The dance sequences by choreographer R. Kim Jordan work

wonderfully with Jonathan Bixby's creations.

A certain skepticism was harbored that Robert Louis Stevenson's story, The

Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde could be translated to a musical. Here

types a true believer: the talent of director Gregory Boyd, with the

collaborative effort of Wildhorn and Bricusse, is pure brilliance.

The show debuted in Houston's 824-seat Alley Theatre and was so successful the

run was extended twice. This production, at New Haven's famous Shubert

Performing Arts Center, is a new and larger production than that seen in

Texas. It is here only through Sunday, October 22.

This is theatre for all ages, except perhaps the very young. The clarity of

the audio in the theatre makes every word audible. The visual sense of the

actor's make-up is akin to a Hogarth print: it caricatures the characters.

Tickets are on sale at the Shubert box office or by calling Pro-Tix at

1-800-955-5566. Prices range from $28 to $50.

When Jekyll & Hyde moves to Broadway in the spring of 1996, prices will be

considerably more. Plus, the Shubert is a glorious theatre, with reasonable

parking close at hand.