Stand back and listen, world. "Joyful Noise" has the potential to become one of the classics of the season. It has all of the necessary components. It's well written with lively dialogue that speaks of the century, the characters and the situation in which the creator of "The Messiah," George Frederic Handel, lived.
There's humor and pathos.And there's a great deal to be learned here about suffering, compassion, the human experience and divine intervention.
The story swirls around Susanna Cibber, played by Stephanie Foster Breinholt, and the scandalous but largely misunderstood situation that brought her to disgrace in the London of 1741-43.
Cibber is one of the "two sopranos in one day" who sang with "no curlicues" for "The Master," Handel, who had a reputation not only for greatness but for a fearsome temperament and short fuse.
She's seen as a threat by one of the great ladies of the theater at the time, Kitty Clive, played by Katie Foster, an impossibly vain woman who thrives on her love of self and whose tongue is a sharp instrument too often used for hurting those who need no more pain.
At first, only Mary Pendarves, the warm and motherly matron played by Colleen M. Baum, employed by Handel as a housekeeper, can see any good and truth in Cibber until she's matched up with Handel's newest sacred oratorio.
The story essentially weaves the tale of Cibber's climb back to a position of respect in society with Handel's attempt to redeem himself in the musical world and with the king of England, who subsidizes his musical passion.
Along the way there are wonderful moments of humor and insights into human nature.
Charles Jennins, played by D.C. Wright, doesn't want Handel to change a word of his scriptural draft and certainly doesn't want an overture included. He doesn't think much of the music Handel creates either.
Bishop Henry Egerton, played by Braden Gregory Bell, represents all of the voices who disapproved of Handel's "mocking" operas and unwittingly finds himself breaking the very strictures that govern his existence to protect the good people of London from the blasphemy of Handel's "Mes-siah."
The characters are real and likable, even though they clearly have differing views on how affairs ought to be conducted. They have marvelous depth.
Baum is a standout with her delivery, her tone and wonderful facial expression. Foster undoes the audience with her portrayal of the dead Desdemonia on Handel's writing desk.
Cameron Deavor, as King George II, comes into his own, particularly in the final act.
In fact, every cast member excels, from the tiny child who plays Susanna's daughter, Molly, to Handel, played vigorously by Richard J. Clifford, as he deals with discouragement, financial setbacks and those around him who claim they know better what makes a good opera. "When I said your operas are rubbish, that was not meant to be discouraging."
This show is a stunning production with simplicity as the watchword in staging and set design. A simple gauzy curtain flanked by pseudo-stone pillars set on the edges of an inlaid wooden floor is the only background, with a few chairs, a desk and a harpsichord filling in the blanks.
Costumes are lavish by comparison and beautifully done.
Direction and blocking has been meticulously planned. There's no waste of motion or emotion.
The acting, the direction, the music, the setting and the costuming are all wonderfully done, but the true kudos go to Provo playwright Tim Slover. He has written a story that sings of history and human drama without getting muddled in raw emotion or bleakness.
There are powerful messages, sometimes conveyed in a single spoken line - such as when the one pound sterling court fine is levied against Cibber's rapist because there was "no actual harm done to the woman."
Ultimately, of course, Handel's music triumphs and lives on to deliver a stirring message of hope, love and forgiveness to souls around the world every Christmas.
This play, given the chance, will do the same.