Xanadu
Reviewed by Dana Martin
Laguna Playhouse
Thru August 21st
It is said that Xanadu is “a gift so grand that none of us truly knows what it is.” In that case, Xanadu (book by Douglas Carter Beane, music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar) is a gift that keeps on giving. Laguna Playhouse’s current production, the campy mashup of ‘80s pop rock shoved into a jukebox musical based on one of the worst movies ever made, is as lovable as it is vapid.
Venice Beach, 1980. Sonny (Dorian Quinn), is a dopey, affable chalk artist in crisis. He’s made mediocre art (been there) — this time a sad sketch of the Greek Muses. His chalk drawing isn’t up to snuff, so he decides to end his life (bad art is worse than death). Meanwhile his mediocre art springs to life in the form of a gaggle of Greek goddesses. Young muse Clio personally hypes Sonny to her sisters and decides to inspire his creativity. She disguises herself as Kira, dons a muddy Australian dialect and puts on roller skates. Fool proof. Forbidden fruits? Love and art.
Sonny’s big dream is operating a roller disco/performance venue in an abandoned Los Angeles auditorium. Kira helps him achieve just that, enlisting the help of her Greek chorus of sisters, and performing miracle after miracle — all while singing and dancing on roller skates. Soon enough Kira catches feelings for the affable Sonny and reveals to him her true identity — not as Kira the Australian roller skater but rather as Clio, the Greek goddess from the chalk painting. Sonny responds by waving all his red flags. Promptly, Clio finds herself a one-way ticket to Mount Olympus and Sonny follows her, convincing Daddy Zeus (Jonathan Van Dyke), not to punish her for all eternity for loving and making art but instead reduce her to mortal status. Brutal, but she seems happy about it. Soon, muses and mortals alike are roller skating the night away (and look good doing it) ‘cause Xanadu Roller Rink has opened for business.
Kristen Daniels does the heavy lifting as Kira/Clio in this production, belting out song after song while on roller skates. While her Australian accent needs work, she has a good sense of the character’s spunkiness and naivete. Dorian Quinn is fine as heartthrob simpleton, Sonny. Petty older sisters Melpomene (Judy Mina- Ballard) and Calliope (Michelle Bendetti) find a fun ugly stepsister/ Hocus Pocus vibe together, but struggle to consistently stay on pitch. Johnathan Van Dyke’s Danny brings some grounding energy to the production. The performers are all solid movers with varying levels of dance expertise but find difficulty sustaining vocal support during big dance numbers.
Director/choreographer Paula Hammons Sloan leans cautiously into the ridiculous absurdity of Xanadu but doesn’t quite find its humanity; there’s a lot of mugging and indicating. Ian Scot’s sound design is fun and silly auditory, but the mix is at times uneven. Clifford Spulock’s lighting is splashy, colorful and textured. Chris Strangfeld’s scenic design features Greek columns, large swaths of draped fabric which creates ample surface for the lights to shine and plenty of open space for roller skating mania. Ricky Pope’s musical direction rises to the challenge of canned music, though often lacks precision. Hammons Sloan’s choreography highlights the performer’s strengths and keeps the action moving.
Xanadu is as fun as it is ridiculous. There are balloons. It’s a celebration! It’s A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum meets Starlight Express. Entertainment for entertainment’s sake. There are leg warmers and pop songs aplenty. Everyone is inexplicably on roller skates at some point. Xanadu the musical is based on the 1980 film starring the late Olivia Newton-John. The movie was a flop but she was an undeniable star and universally beloved, even in the worst movie ever made. Newton-John was an influential artist and a hero to many, including me.
So what is Xanadu? It turns out Xanadu isn’t so grand after all but profoundly simple: Xanadu is loving others and creating art. I’ll skate to that.
Laguna Playhouse, 606 Laguna Canyon Rd., Laguna; Wed.- Fri., 7:30 pm; Sat., 2 p.m. & 7:30 pm;Sun., 1 & 5:30 pm; thru Aug. 21. https://lagunaplayhouse.com or (949) 497-2787. Running time: 2 hours and 15 minutes with one 15-minute intermission.
