Cast: Richard Bermudez (Anatoly), Katie Alexander (Florence), Greg Habelow (Freddie)
This was the third time I got to see Chess. It's one of my favorite musicals, though I've never seen it done the way I would do it if I had the money... The costumes were amazing for the chess set. The choices the Main Street Players Theater made for many of their costumes, sets, etc. were very good. They chose to do the American version of the show for the most part. I never liked the changes made from the original to the Broadway premiere and I had forgotten how many changes there were to the lyrics (I hadn't seen the show in over 7 1/2 years).
The one thing they did in this production that I'd never seen before is have Svetlana talk to her husband in person (rather than on the phone, which is the only way they contacted each other in any version I'd heard of until this point). They also had Svetlana talk to Florence, which I'd never seen before. In fact, Svetlana wasn't even supposed to be in the same country as Florence and Anatoly. This really changes the dynamics and I wasn't fond of that change. I also found it odd that the reporters only had a recorder in one scene. I do some reporting and you almost never see a reporter without a recorder. Since portable recorders were invented, reporters have carried them with them everywhere when working.
The cast was wonderful (especially Richard Bermudez, who I had seen before). The sets, costumes, lighting (except for the end of act one), orchestra, etc. were all great. I would definitely go see another production here, in spite of the fact that it's in a room with no incline, making it difficult to see parts of the show.
Grade: B
Labels: 2007, drama, musical, romance, sports, theatre, Tim Rice
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams