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CVLT turns 'Rotten Scoundrels' around
(by Herb Hammer - March 24, 2011)
THEATER, BY HERB HAMMER
CVLT turns 'Rotten Scoundrels' around
When the Chagrin Valley Little Theatre announced it was about to stage "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels," veteran theatergoers must have wondered why. I did. The musical, adapted from the 1988 movie starring Michael Caine and Steve Martin, failed miserably when David Yazbek and Geoffrey Lane, the songwriter and scriptwriter, opened the show on Broadway.
Critics felt that Broadway didn't need a second-rate musical comedy about two con artists, especially when it came on the heels of the spectacular Mel Brooks' musical "The Producers."
In spite of its many flaws, director Martin Friedman has turned the show completely around. His production of "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" is a joy to watch.
It appears that putting this show on Broadway was aiming too high. The Chagrin Valley Little Theatre is exactly where the show belongs. And casting, well, the talented Mr. Friedman has found the perfect pair of con men to carry the show.
We are on the French Riviera where Lawrence Jameson, a suave, debonair gentleman, spends most of his time swindling unsuspecting rich women out of as much money as he can lay his hands on.
Along comes Freddy Benson, a smalltime slob who wants to get in on the act. Why the wildly successful Mr. Jameson agrees to teach Freddy the ropes is another story. Freddy does help him out when a lonely Oklahoma heiress tries to get Lawrence to come back home with her.
The big play is to bilk $50,000 out of a young American soap heiress. Here, our two heroes decide to compete for the cash.
Laughs are plentiful, especially when Trey Gilpin, who plays Freddy, is on stage. Mr. Gilpin is a natural funny man who can make the lowest lowdown gag -- and there are loads of them -- keep the theater ringing with laughter.
Not to be outdone is the suave Rob Albrecht, as Lawrence Jameson. The director has chosen the perfect comedy con man. He's especially good when he masquerades as a German psychologist who tries to spoil Freddy's act as a wheelchair-bound soldier.
Libby Merriman gets her share of laughs as the lady from Oklahoma.
Much of the show belongs to Heather Hersh, as the supposed soap heiress. She's just right playing Christine Colgate, a bit of a clumsy ding-a-ling who has a few tricks up her sleeve. The combination of performers, along with superb direction by Mr. Friedman, brings the house down.
The songs are the big disappointment. Mr. Yazbek has not been able to capture much that would please a musical comedy audience. In fact, his score most often gets in the way of Mr. Lane's uproarious shenanigans.
A secondary plot that includes a corrupt police chief and a lonely divorcee doesn't catch fire and could have been left out.
For the most part, the bawdy jokes vaulting over good taste may be a little hard to digest, but they are awfully funny.
"Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" aims small but just small enough for Chagrin Valley Little Theatre to make it a must-see show.
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