(Cast of Schmigadoon. Photo by Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman)

by Tim Leininger

NEW YORK — In what may be the funniest musical since Book of Mormon, Schmigadoon! is a hilarious send up of the classic musicals of the 1940s and 50s. The new comedy with book, music, and lyrics by Cinco Paul, is based on the Apple TV series of the same name, co-created by Paul and Ken Daurio, directed and choreographed by Christopher Gattelli, running at the Nederlander Theatre at 208 W. 41^st St.

            The musical follows Josh Skinner (Alex Brightman) and Melissa Gimble (Sara Chase), a New York couple who have started to lose the spark in their romance. On a hiking trip, the duo stumble into a mysterious, mystical community called Schmigadoon, where everyone communicates through musical numbers. The plot stays faithful to the television series, so if you’ve seen it, it should be a pleasure to experience it in the more immersive theatrical environment.

            As the plot develops, Josh and Melissa discover that they are magically incapable of leaving the town until they find their true love. Since they don’t have it for each other, they start looking for it with the other members of the community. Melissa meets carnival barker Danny Bailey (Max Clayton), while Josh becomes enamored with the young, and heavily implied to be underage, Betsy (McKenzie Kurtz). This is only the start of their romantic adventures as they refuse to address their problems with each other while looking for answers elsewhere.

(Sara Chase, Max Clayton. Photo by Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman)

            What’s great about Paul’s book is the time he takes in developing every character along the way, allowing for the people like Emma Tate (Isabelle McCalla) and her younger brother Carson (Ayaan Diop) have room to breathe and develop as Josh gets to know them. There’s also colorful little subplots like the conservative prude, Mildred Layton (Ana Gasteyer), who finds the community of Schmigadoon becoming too decadent and needs a firmer hand of leadership, deciding to run for mayor against the long sitting Mayor Menlove (Brad Oscar) — a not so subtle name that describes his latent preferences.

            Not subtle is much of Schmigadoon, from the name of the musical itself, lifted from the Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe musical Brigadoon, a musical about two travelers in Scotland who get lost, stumbling into a mystical village. The rest of Schmigadoon is loaded with references to musicals from the 1940s and 50s. Meredith Wilson’s The Music Man is represented throughout, from Marian Paroo being the inspiration for Emma Tate and Eulalie Mackecknie Shinn being represented through Mildred Layton, who gets a fantastic parody of “(Ya Got) Trouble” with the song “Tribulation.” Betsy is a lift of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II’s Ado Annie Carnes from Oklahoma! She gets a number with the citizens of Schmigadoon called “Corn Puddin’,” a delightfully inuendo laced song about sex and the female anatomy that takes one line from “I’m in Love with a Wonderful Guy” from another Rodgers and Hammerstein musical South Pacific, exaggerating everything with comical glee. Carousel and The Sound of Music also get significant parody with Melissa’s love life with Danny being an obvious comparison to Billy Bigelow and her later romantic interest with the Doc (Ivan Hernandez) a reference to Captain von Trapp and his own betrothed Countess Gabrielle Von Blerkom, an obvious reference to Baroness Elsa Schraeder.

(Alex Brightman, Ayaan Diop. Photo by Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman)

            These are only some of the love letters to musicals of yore, and a love letter is what Schmigadoon! is. The cast embrace the excess of parody as everything is played to heighten the humor. Alex Brightman, who has a history of playing over the top characters (Beetlejuice, School of Rock), is surprisingly one of the lesser exaggerated characters as Josh has no love for musicals and is resistant to the conceit around him, while Melissa embraces the musical world around her, whish Sara Chase plays with joyful delight. The rest of the ensemble is excellent as well as they never hold back the absurd silliness of the musical’s concept.

            The design team also play up the excessiveness of it all, from Scott Pask’s sprawling scenic design to Linda Cho’s colorful costumes, and Donald Holder’s perfectly atmospheric lighting.

            If you are a fan of the television series or a lover of the golden era of Broadway book musicals, Schmigadoon! is a musical to which you can’t say no. It’s a hilarious show and everyone should go see it.

TICKETS: https://schmigadoonbroadway.com/

PRODUCTION: Book, Music, and Lyrics by Cinco Paul; Directed and Choreographed by Christopher Gattelli; Scenic Design: Scott Pask; Costume Design: Linda Cho; Lighting Design: Donald Holder; Sound Design: Walter Trarbach; Hair & Wig Design: Tom Watson; Makeup Design: Ashley Ryan; Music Supervisor & Arranger: David Chase; Orchestrations: Doug Besterman & Mike Morris; Music Direction: Steven Malone; Music Coordinators: Michael Aarons & Anja Wood, M-Squared Music; Assistant Director: Bethany Samuelson Pettigrew; Associate Choreographer: Lou Castro; Press Representation: Rubenstein Communications/Amy Jacobs; Advertising & Marketing: AKA; Digital Marketing: Sine Digital; Production Stage Manager: Matthew Lacey; Company Manager: Carrie Jablansky; Casting: Bernard Telsey, CSA, Kristian Charbonier, CSA; Production Management: Juniper Street Productions; General Management: TT Partners, David Turner & Brittany Weber; Associate Producers: Hannah Rowen & Taylor Tranfaglia

CAST

Alex Brightman as Josh Skinner

Sara Chase as Melissa Gimble

Ana Gasteyer as Mildred Layton

Ann Harada as Florence Menlove

Brad Oscar as Mayor Menlove

Isabelle McCalla as Emma Tate

Ivan Hernandez as Doc

Maulik Pancholy as The Reverend Layton

Max Clayton as Danny Bailey

McKenzie Kurtz as Betsy

Ayaan Diop as Carson

The Townspeople of Schmigadoon!

Afra Hines as Countess Gabrielle Von Blerkom

Becca Petersen as Annie

Clyde Alves as Tommy

Jess Leprotto as Pete

Joshua Burrage as Larry the Fireman

Kaleigh Cronin as Helen Pritt

Lyrica Woodruff as Nancy

Nathan Lucrezio as Farmer McDonough

Richard Riaz Yoder as Harvey the Innkeeper

Shina Ann Morris as Meg

Zachary Downer as Freddy