"Singin' in the Rain" Review

Gotta make this brief before the thunderstorm really gets rolling.

I caught the Saturday night performance of Singin' in the Rain at the Patty Granville Performing Arts Center in Garland. This was the first show of the the two show season for Garland Summer Musicals.

The show was entertaining enough to be worth the price of admission. The sound was uneven at times, but that's partly a function of the performance space and partly the result of the inherent unreliability of body mics. If you've ever seen the movie from which the show was adapted, you know the basic premise. Joseph Jones plays Don Lockwood, the established silent picture star who teams with Lina Lamont, played by Allison Rogers. One evening, Lockwood bumps into aspiring actress Kathy Selden, played by Emily Lockhart, and the chemistry is immediate. Or at least it's supposed to be immediate. I've now seen Jones and Lockhart play romantic leads in three shows at GSM (the other two were 42nd Street and Crazy For You), and I still don't believe them as a couple. Okay, so maybe Billy Lawlor isn't really the romantic lead, but you get my point.

The only time I really paid attention to Jones and Lockhart was when they were dancing together. They co-choreographed the show, and they both are at their best when dancing.

The supporting cast was good, with particular notes of praise needing to be given to Steven Beene as the Diction Coach and Linda Frank as Roz, the head of Publicity for Monumental Pictures. Delynda Johnson Moravec also turns in fine performances in two different roles.

Allison Rogers was strong as the conniving and imminently unlikeable Lina. Some around me had difficulty understanding her lines a couple of times, but she did a great job wih the character. Her song, "What's Wrong With Me" was a highlight of the show.

I cannot think of enough ways to praise the performance of Andy Gosnell as Cosmo Brown, Lockwood's best friend and former vaudeville partner. Gosnell stole every scene in which he appeared and routinely got large applause and cheers after his songs. "Make 'Em Laugh" may have been derivative from the original choreography in the movie, but Gosnell made in enjoyable nonetheless.

The show only runs through Sunday the 25th of June, so if you want to see it, don't delay. It isn't the best show I've ever seen, but it's worth the money.