04/30/2010 - The Independent

2 THE INDEPENDENT • THURSDAY, APRIL 29, 2010 Art & EntertainmentWhat’s so funny about greed?The Producers Camped-out at the Bankheadby Harry StollIn The Producers—one producerwhines, the other wheedlesmoney out of lonely loaded oldladies—and together, they betagainst their investors, a preposterousnotion with absolutely nobasis in reality. Max Bialystockand Leo Bloom choose a musical,Springtime for Hitler, that will sooffend the audience it will openand close the same night. Theycook the books intending to takethe money and fly down to Rio. Butalas, poor Bialystock and Bloom,it’s too bad to fail. After an initialgasp, the audience finds letting thesunshine into the evil vile life ofHitler is not an outrage, but outrageous,and Springtime is a joy tothe world. It’s not Bloom’s day andBialystock plunges.The Producers is a derivative ofMel Brooks’ screenplay for his filmdebut in 1968. He adapted it for thestage in 2000 and it was a huge hit.His oeuvre includes Robin Hood:men in tights, Dracula: dead andloving it, and the in-progress, CEO,Baby.The Tri-Valley Repertory Theatrepresent it at the Bankhead—with disciplined, but over the top,around the bend, and below theBorscht Belt performances, direction,dancing to the music, choreography,and script—to sneak apeek into the human heart. Thistale of greed is good. KathleenBreedveld is the producer and JohnMaio the director.Jeff Seaberg portrays the bullyingBialystock and Robert Lopezthe shrinking violet Bloom. Bothdistinction up the place. The oncebigshot Bialystock is withoutprofit in his hometown.Lighting designer AndrewDorland lights up the sky overBialystock when BookkeeperBloom notes that a failed productioncan make money. Bialystockbludgeons bookkeeper Bloom intoleveraging and slicing and dicingthe investments. Lopez’ Bloomis an honorable wimp who is tooeasily corrupted by thoughts ofshow biz glitz, including babeson Broadway, “… in nothing butpearls.”Bialystock plays sex games toget old ladies’ largesse. In The WellHung Stable Boy and the MilkMaid, Savannah Stratton is deliciouslylascivious as she deliversCast of "The Producers" in rehearsal for the Bankhead Theater production.raucous lines lying spread on hiscasting couch while he becomes aman with a mission.Seaberg has a big show bizvoice and Lopez a beautiful widerangingvoice. They are so goodyou believe it.Tiffany Davis is the oo la laUlla, who undulates, dances likea windup doll, and is chosen forthe play by the panting pair. Tiffanydelivers a smart portrayal ofthe cliché dumb blonde. She haslegs up to here, no to there, andprovides an insight when she sitson the couch between them anduncrosses and recrosses them atthe speed of sight. Davis plays herwith naughty innocence.The script shtiks it to the audiencewith a glut of good gags—beforeyou can swallow one herecomes another. It’s gritty and witty,sometimes silly, but ya gotta payattention. Check the backgroundposters, such as “King Leer.”Ben Krantz should be chargedwith larceny for his love childFranz Liebkind, who is the derangedplaywright of Springtimefor Hitler. Bulky Ben happilydances and sings in celebrationof all things Third Reichian. Hisplay might not play in Peoria butSandpoint will love it. When it’scorrupted, he is enraged and wavesa Luger, taking names and kickingattitudes.Doing this corruption is theworst director they could find,Roger DeBris of the Gay WhiteWay—played by Kenneth Blairwith swishiness. When B&Bvisit his house to sign him up, heintroduces his all-gay productionteam. “They all live here.” That’sa comment on the high proportionof gays in theater.Some of the gay scenes drag,with caricatures rather than characters.The biggest audience laughsat the gay gags came from females,while the biggest laughs at dumbblonde cheap shots came frommales. Brooks fan, Danville actorG. Scott Phillips, points out thatBrooks is an equal opportunityoffender. He says, “The gay stereotypesdepicted (Roger DeBrisand his entourage) certainly existwithin the gay community, but theyare only a part of who we are.”The young actors play oldladies bent, creaky, croaky, andphony. They are clad in floral printPhoto - Doug Jorgensendresses, and carry patent leatherpurses. One scene with three oldladies would make Archie Bunkersquirm. But then immediately,they captivate with a walker-dancecreated by Tri-Valley Rep’s KevinHammond. In a Busby BerkeleyesqueTilt-a-Whirl, the circlingdancers raise their walkers andthe light bounces off the flyingaluminum legs, then they comeback to earth.The costumes by Lisa Danz aregorgeous and fitting, the choreographydances, and the sound ofmusic echoes to support the story.The ensemble dance numbers area high kick as they spin, glisten,and all in all are shiny and bright.Those are some of The Producerslong suits—its length isn’t. Geez,26 scenes.During intermission, the audienceis handed a playbill of Springtimewith ads done in a 1950s styleand a pun-filled production crewlist, such as “Orchestrations …Blair Flatley,” but missed sayingit’s performed at The Blankhead.The Tri-Valley troupe’s Springtimefor Hitler is lavish and flieslike a mockingbird with swastikadancers, and soldiers in well-tailoreduniforms, including a blueeyedblonde dude in dark blue,played by Bob Stratton. His castnotes have the Brooksian commentthat he “… likes blind sky diving,Sumo wrestling, and full contactgardening. There are brown shirtsto poke fun at, including Hitler inJodhpurs, sitting on the edge of thestage for his soliloquy, perhaps tooclose to the audience for comfort.We know what happens to Hitler.What do you think happens tothose who scheme to cheat theirinvestors? Part of the answer isat the Bankhead in The Producers.It’s springtime, time to seeSpringtime for Hitler, the musicalwithin a musical.The Producers:Bankhead Theater, 2400 First Street, LivermoreRemaining runs:Fridays and Saturdays April 30, May 1, 7, and 8, at 8p.m. and matinees Sundays May 2 and 9, at 2 p.m.Admission:$36.50 general, $34.50 for seniors over 60, and $26.50for juniors, under 18Tickets:Online www.livermoreperformingarts.org, by phone925.373.6800, or at the ticket window