Ai Yamato, Kasey Hentz and Natalie Reff (Photo by Ren Shelburne)
Reviewed by Joel Beers
Jaxx Theatricals
Through March 29
RECOMMENDED
Sofia Gutierrez, Anna Gagliardo, Amor Christensen and Charlot
Ensemble of “Sweet Charity” (Photo by Ren Shelburne)
Anyone suspecting the 1966 Broadway hit Sweet Charity hasn’t aged particularly well will find ample evidence: a sanitized take on sex work, a heroine defined largely by romantic delusion, a brand of brassy, wink-at-the-audience innocence, and a glossy, go-go optimism that papers over the harsher edges of the world it pretends to depict.
However, this Jaxx Theatricals production, directed and choreographed by Jeremy Lucas, embraces (or lap-dances) into the material’s rougher edges rather than sanding them down. It’s a sexy, seedy, in-your-face (often literally) show that reframes its dated elements as part of a deliberately heightened, almost confrontational theatricality, in which, at times, you feel less like a member of a staid theater audience than a participant in a collective peep show.
That doesn’t mean the titular Charity (played by Kasey Hentz, a talented actor who makes Charity extremely likeable even if her voice isn’t the most commanding) isn’t still sweet: a diehard romantic with a heart of gold and a predilection for giving it to questionable men. Even here, where — like most of the 20-person cast — her costume is more flesh than fabric, she retains the big-eyed innocence of a country girl adrift in a tough, chaotic Manhattan, dreaming of something better than the Fandango Ballroom — which here feels more like a unisex strip club than a bygone dance hall.
Alas, the Fandango isn’t the only locale in this play, and this show has a second act, which mostly moves outside of the dance hall. With one notable exception, the numbers lack sizzle, and since this show relies more on song and movement than articulated story, this makes for a duller affair — and probably also to the sense that director/choreographer Lucas ran out of inventive movement ideas.
But that front-loaded first act, which boasts one of the most impressive strings of numbers of any old-school Broadway musical, is a knockout, beginning with the hilarious ensemble work at the top, where Charity is fished from a Central Park lake after slipping (or was she pushed?), to a string of show-stoppers: the sultry “Big Spender,” the exquisitely choreographed instrumental “Rich Man’s Frug,” the iconic “If My Friends Could See Me Now,” and the driving “There’s Gotta Be Something Better Than This.”
As Act One concludes, Charity seems poised to find something better in the unassuming Oscar (played by the comically animated Tom Sys, whose mother flew all the way from Belgium just to see him perform Saturday night), and the show shifts toward a more conventional romance, which makes it less interesting to watch or hear. That said, the first major number of Act Two, “The Rhythm of Life,” is an absurd standout. It ranks among Broadway’s most bizarre and unnecessary numbers: a guru/cult leader guiding a flock of hyper-energized hippie (still clad in mostly skin) in a riotous orgy of free love and apparent psychedelic experimentation. Charity and Oscar are mostly absent, and its existence outside of lampooning the counterculture feels unmoored. But, led by an intense and impossible-to-not-watch Amor Christensen, it’s a hoot and the clear highlight of a wobbly second act.
The ensemble is uniformly strong in terms of singing, dancing and embracing their inner ids when called for, and Natalie Reff and Ai Yamato, in the supporting roles of Nickie and Helena, both shine, as does the four-instrument orchestra under the musical direction of James Lent.
Ultimately, “Sweet Charity” is a show of contrasts: dated in some ways, yet still capable of thrill and laughter and even some poignancy when staged with daring energy. Even if the second act falters, the spectacle, the choreography, and the sheer audacity of moments like “The Rhythm of Life” ensure that this is a production worth seeing — part period piece, part risqué delight, and, mostly, all in-your-face (sometimes literally) fun.
Jaxx Theatricals, 5432 Santa Monica Blvd., E. Hollywood. Thurs.-Sat., 8 pm; Sun., 7 pm; thru March 29. https://jaxxtheatricals.org/ Running time: 2 hours and 30 minutes with an intermission.
