I was at the store today and found it
extremely odd that right next to all the Halloween candy and costumes
there were Christmas decorations out. In this seasonal mash up it
made me forget that from Halloween to Christmas there is still an
entire month between them. In the Marriott's production of Irving
Berlin's “White Christmas” that opened last night the thought of
that time period looms over an otherwise enjoyable production.
The show which played in an opulent but
hollow production that played at Bank of America theater last year
seems to have found the heart at the expense of the physical
production.
In the Marriott's production things Rod
Thomas and Andrew Lupp add warmth, charm, and robust singing voices
to their roles of Bob Wallace and Phil Davis. Mr. Thomas scores
particularly with the classic ballad “Count Your Blessings Instead
of Sheep” while Mr. Lupp leads a showstopping dance number to “I
Love a Piano.”
As the sisters Betty and Judy Haynes,
Stephanie Binetti and Tammy Mader sound beautilful together even if
their roles aren't as fleshed out as the men in the show.
In yet another scene stealing role
Alene Robertson proves that there is simply no one else who can
delivery a line with deadpan ferocity and still belt “Let Me Sing
and I am Happy”with power and her trademark gutso.
The rest of the cast handles the Babes
in Arms story of let's put on a show with comedic shots and great
dancing. The costumes done with the usual intelligence and style by
Nancy Missimi are excellent and the direction and choreography by
Marc Robin is nothing but first rate all the way.
Even though as the show ended and we
walked into the October night it still made you imagine that it was
winter time instead of fall.
