Jeremy Daniel
The musical Chicago is on tour for its long-running 26th year (since the 1996 revival) and the tour has just brought it to the National Theater in DC for two weeks. It’s not the biggest theater, but the Chicago production is always more about the minimalist performance instead of flashy effects or sets. If you’ve never seen it live, the show always has a live band (heavy on the brass) taking up most of the stage, while the actors integrate in front of and over it.
The show was an early one in ‘breaking the fourth wall’ by addressing or referring to the audience, which wasn’t entirely appreciated back in the day but feels completely appropriate now. The band leader (Cameron Blake Kinnear) serves as both actual conductor but also a sort of narrative voice at times for the audience, another way of drawing the audience into the performance — it’s not a simple thing to do, actually conducting while performing at the same time, but Kinnear handles it with ease.
Our main characters are the two classic criminal ladies Velma Kelly (Logan Floyd), the slightly more established vaudeville performer and Roxie Hart (Katie Frieden), the aspiring, somewhat amoral ingénue. These two are the primary characters in our production of self-important performers, and both are excellent here. Logan Floyd expertly belts out Velma’s signature pieces while knowingly teasing the audience with a wink and a twirl. Katie Frieden balances the difficult task of the dual nature of Roxie — the hubristic wannabe star and the sympathetic woman on trial for her life.
Jeremy Daniel
Jeff Brooks is an absolute killer as slimy, bombastic lawyer Billy Flynn (not to be confused with the other Broadway actor Jeff Brooks 30 years his senior), dominating the room with his voice and presence. The ensemble cast of singers and dancers is, of course, uniformly good-looking and in unreasonably good shape, but they rotate in and out of different roles as needed. The ‘Cell Block Tango’ has always been one of my favorites of the show, and this team does it justice.
In the side (but important) roles, Christina Wells takes on the difficult role of ‘Mama’ Morton, which requires a level of humor and volume she confidently handles. In the difficult role of Mary Sunshine is G. A. James, who manages a level of trilling that got cheers from the crowd. I was also impressed by Sammy Tuchman in the brief but important role of ‘Go-To-Hell-Kitty’ — she makes shooting a shotgun look elegant.
Jeremy Daniel
Chicago has a track list that’s almost all memorable classics — only a few aren’t really my speed, but that’s nothing to do with this team who pulled off every switch with aplomb, and the band that easily switched between the bombastic songs like ‘When You’re Good to Mama’ or the soulful ‘Mister Cellophane’. As the transparent man Amos Hart himself, Brian Kalinowski brings humor and energy to the role that had the audience practically calling for a redemption rewrite for his character.
If you’ve already seen Chicago live, this is a great cast to experience it again — there are no odd B-level celebrity castings that don’t fit, simply solid, talented performers all around. If you’ve only seen the movie, you owe it to yourself to see the version that inspired it — the movie is fun, but it doesn’t have the same experience as seeing this one live. And if you haven’t seen it at all but enjoy musicals, this is definitely a recommended showing.
Chicago runs through November 27 at the National Theatre in Washington DC. Other cities on the schedule include Chicago, Fort Lauderdale, Chattanooga, Memphis, Orlando, Spokane and more. Visit the official website for more information. Use our Ticketmaster link to purchase tickets.
Chicago – North American tour montage
Stage Entertainment
Check our Ticketmaster link for ticket availability.
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