‘Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat’ at Reagle Music Theatre (Waltham, MA)

Peter Mill as JOSEPH and male ensemble perform “Joseph’s Coat.”

Courtesy Reagle Music Theatre/©Herb Philpott

Reagle Music Theatre opens their forty-ninth season with Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s classic pop musical ‘Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat’. Based on a biblical story, this family friendly production is once again delighting Reagle audiences with its fun music, bright costumes, and story of family, faith and forgiveness. Director and choreographer Susan M. Chebookjian skillfully incorporated the talents of the cast into the choreography, which featured a number of turns, jumps, and lifts. While this production had its standout moments, it was not without a few unfortunate and consequential mishaps.

The cast was very energetic and their enthusiasm clearly showed in their dancing. That being said, it seemed as though this production leaned heavily towards the hokey and, at many times, overacted side, as noticed by the casts’ substantial “face acting”. While most of the audience seemed to enjoy it, I found it a bit too overdone and disingenuous.

Ayla Brown (center) as NARRATOR with children’s

chorus performing “A Pharaoh’s Story”.

Courtesy Reagle Music Theatre/©Herb Philpott

Thankfully, the cast featured three charismatic and incredibly talented performers in the roles of the Narrator, Joseph, and Pharaoh. Country music singer Ayla Brown guided the show along as the Narrator. Her stage presence was cool and collected, moving easily from telling the story to singing and dancing along with the characters. Her stellar vocals and charming demeanor quickly made her an audience favorite. As Joseph, Peter Mill was incredible. His rendition of “Any Dream Will Do” was genuine and meaningfully sung; while his performance of “Close Every Door” was chilling and powerful. It was easily one of my favorite numbers. He played Joseph with truth and conviction, which really had the audience rooting for him during his many trials and tribulations. Andrew Giordano was amazing as the Pharaoh. Though he was only on stage a short time in act two, he quickly captured the audience’s attention with his smooth vocals and Elvis-like dance moves. It didn’t take long before the audience was happily applauding.

Andrew Giordano (center) as PHARAOH performing “Song of the King”.

Courtesy Reagle Music Theatre/©Herb Philpott

My major concern with this production was the number of sound problems it had throughout the performance. Microphones were cutting in and out, full lines of songs were missed and there was a surplus of crackling and static which was difficult to ignore. Thankfully the microphones of the Narrator, Joseph and Pharaoh had the least amount of problems so their voices could be heard and more fully enjoyed. The ensemble, however, was very difficult to hear at times and it noticeably effected how the audience responded. Nonetheless, the audience, overall, seemed to enjoy this production giving it hearty applause during the curtain call. ©

‘Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat’ plays until June 18^th at the Robinson Theatre (617 Lexington Street, Waltham, MA). For information and tickets visit www.reaglemusictheatre.com.