The energy -- and creativity -- level in this regional premiere in Hale Centre Theatre's intimate, new Black Box Theatre is reminiscent of the legendary Theatre 138 during its heyday.
Director Annette Wright (whose most recent directorial work was the Rodgers Memorial Theatre's hilarious mounting of "Cinderella") has taken a big, Broadway "proscenium" musical and made it fit quite nicely in a small, 124-seat venue.The Black Box practically brings the audience into direct, face-to-face contact with umped-on, single mother Paula McFadden (a wonderful performance by Jeni Carver), who finds herself reluctantly involved with actor Elliot Garfield (an equally terrific performance by Mark Daniels), who has sublet her New York apartment . . . from the jerk who has just run off to Spain with what Paula thought was her share of the rent money.
Suddenly broke and nearly homeless, Paula decides to resume her long-dormant dancing career in an effort to support her self and her precocious daughter, Lucy (nicely played on opening night by Caitlin Henriksen, who will alternate in the role with Gina Rizzuto).
During its relatively brief Broadway run (188 performances in mid-1993), the show had a slightly larger cast than HCT's -- 10 major speaking roles and a 14-member ensemble. Since then, the piece has been pared back so that it's very big on the "dinner-theater circuit," and director Wright has managed to condense things quite cleverly even more.
Instead of a full orchestra, there's just a solo pianist (think of Marvin Hamlisch demonstrating the piece for potential backers). Kelly DeHaan tackles this job with verve. Not only does he accompany all of the songs, he jumps onto the stage to portray multiple roles, notably the dance studio instructor (where Paula discovers, much to her painful chagrin, that she's always "A Beat Behind"), and the foppish director of a really strange off-Broadway production of "Richard III," where he insists that Elliot play Richard "as a man, playing a woman, playing a man."
Sharon Lynn Kenison, who's performed in dozens of HCT productions, also has two roles here -- first as leggy dancer Donna and then as Mrs. Crosby, Paula's frumpish and nosy landlady.
For those few segments of the show that require vocals by a chorus, sound and light technicians Mike Williams and Ben Clark join in from their booth just behind the back row.
The staging just adds to the fun and games -- and, believe me, David Zippel's lyrics are a lot of fun. The songs do drive the plot, which follows Paula and Elliot through their reluctant relationship.
After agreeing to share the tiny apartment (in a very platonic way, of course), Paula feels certain that since she works days and he works nights, they may never actually see each other. But Elliot still lays down some pretty firm rules (" . . . I don't like your nylons wringing wet, on the rod, and if you have to leave your razor on the sink, you run the risk I'll turn into Sweeney Todd").
Of course, Elliot is too decent to turn into Sweeney Todd.
Lyricist David Zippel has also worked on such shows as the animated movies, "Hercules" and "Mulan" and the Broadway hit, "City of Angels."
"The Goodbye Girl" fits nicely into Hale Centre Theatre's family-oriented niche. It's a very funny show with snappy (not sappy) songs.