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Move over, Gene Kelly. The Dutch Apple's production of "Singin' in the Rain" is one terrific show.
The feel-good classic musical is filled with fine acting performances, great set design and marvelous choreography.
Set in the Hollywood of 1927, the show takes place for the most part on the lot of Monumental Studios, where the heart-throb duo of Don Lockwood (Michael VanGemert) and Lina Lamont (Katie Rochon) are beginning work on a new silent flick, "The Dueling Cavalier."
Everything seems fine, but there's trouble on the horizon in the form of a new movie, "The Jazz Singer," which is being billed as the first "talkie" — a film in which the audience actually hears the actors' voices.
Except for Lockwood's friend Cosmo Brown (John Ramsey), everyone thinks "The Jazz Singer" will be a flop and talkies will die a quiet death. So when they prove to be wildly popular, there's great concern at Monumental Studios.
Lockwood is a fine actor, who can easily make the transition to talkies. But the bleached-blonde Lamont is a twit with a voice not unlike fingernails on a blackboard.
Lockwood has other problems as well. The movie magazines have linked him and Lamont as a hot Hollywood item, a rumor Lamont herself propagates while he has fallen for a Coconut Grove dance girl, Kathy Seldon (Erin VanGemert).
With talking movies the coming rage, an effort is made to convert "The Dueling Cavalier" into a musical — "The Dancing Cavalier" — but a sneak preview is an utter disaster, both technologically and because Lamont's voice comes across with as much resonance as crinkling tinfoil into a microphone.
Brown's solution of overdubbing Seldon's voice for Lamont saves the movie, but Lamont finds out and tries to destroy Seldon's budding career.
There's so much about this show that's right that it's hard to decide where to begin.
Michael VanGemert is marvelous in his first — and hopefully not last — appearance at the Dutch Apple. His portrayal of Lockwood is easygoing and genuine, and with Seldon played to perfection by his real-life wife, the romantic leads achieve an unbeatable on-stage chemistry.
VanGemert is also a fine dancer, and his Kellyesque "Singing in the Rain" sequence is wonderful.
Ramsey also is super as Brown, Lockwood's longtime friend, whose wit and sense of the absurd help keep superstar Lockwood's feet on the ground.
Not to be overlooked is Rochon's performance as Lina Lamont. One has to be a darn good actress to portray as bad an actress and singer as Lina Lamont. My only regret is that, during the finale, the director, M. Seth Reines, couldn't find at least one solo line for Rochon so the audience could hear her true vocal style.
This isn't the first time the Dutch Apple has staged "Singin' in the Rain," but it's probably the best production the theater has staged in my experience. Especially interesting is the use of black-and-white film footage shot of the cast earlier and screened during the show as Monumental's silent movie.
"Singin' in the Rain" runs through July 25. Don't be a drip and miss it.
E-mail: lalexander@lnpnews.com
