If you loved Actor’s Express’ recent musical satire “Urinetown,” or if you’ve been around long enough to have relished Horizon’s similarly unorthodox “Avenue Q” a dozen or so years ago; if razzle-dazzle jukebox revues aren’t exactly your idea of exemplary theater; or, if you often tire of local troupes trotting out many of the same old famous staples of the song-and-dance genre — then does City Springs Theatre ever have a jolly good show for you: “Monty Python’s Spamalot.”
Credit: Ben Rose/BenRosePhotography.com
Credit: Ben Rose/BenRosePhotography.com
Since opening in 2018, and specializing in producing only musicals, the highly qualified Sandy Springs company has presented its share of mainstream standards, from “42nd Street” and “Anything Goes,” to “West Side Story” and “The Sound of Music,” to “A Chorus Line” and “Into the Woods.” But some of the group’s best work has been decidedly off the beaten path, including stellar undertakings of less conventional fare like “Billy Elliot” or “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder.”
“Spamalot” is based on — or, by its own description, “lovingly ripped off from” — the 1975 cult movie “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” in which the beloved British comedy team poked raucous, irreverent fun at the classic tale of King Arthur, his Knights of the Round Table, and their consecrated quest to find a certain elusive golden chalice.
The stage version takes that tongue-in-cheek approach to a new level. Conceived by original Monty Python member Eric Idle (who penned the script and lyrics, and co-wrote the music with John Du Prez), the show not only parodies the Arthurian legend, but it also spoofs musical theater itself.
Granted, Monty Python’s patented sense of humor is an acquired taste, but there’s no denying the infectious spirit that imbues Shane Delancey’s rollicking rendition of “Spamalot” for City Springs. Incredibly, judging by his program bio, it’s his first directorial effort, and a wholly disarming one at that — pun intended, for fans familiar with Arthur’s bloody encounter with the Black Knight in the story.
Credit: Ben Rose/BenRosePhotography.com
Credit: Ben Rose/BenRosePhotography.com
Other renowned gags have been lifted from the film, too (plus a few animated projections done up in a style reminiscent of Monty Python’s syndicated “Flying Circus” TV show): a riff on the Trojan Horse involving a large wooden rabbit; a violent confrontation with another bunny, in the form of a deceptively adorable little puppet; a battle sequence that culminates with a catapulted cow; and the running gag of Arthur riding around on an imaginary horse, while his trusty manservant trails behind him using coconut shells to supply the galloping sound effects.
That sidekick performs the same amusing function during one of his sire’s tap-dancing numbers. In another bit, the mythical Lady of the Lake is accompanied by a squad of “Laker Girls” who break into a spontaneous cheerleading routine (choreography by Liz LeGrande). Here, Camelot manifests as a sort of medieval Las Vegas, replete with colorfully dressed chorus girls and lots of flashing lights.
The peerless comedic actor Googie Uterhardt, always a welcome presence, maintains a calm and collected demeanor and keeps a rather straight face as Arthur, which is not quite to say he plays it entirely straight. He invests his scenes with a delicious deadpan delivery that reaches a peak with his song “I’m All Alone,” one of several musical highlights in the show (under the music direction of Greg Matteson, who conducts City Springs’ polished nine-piece orchestra).
Meanwhile, letting loose in the kind of freewheeling character roles on which Uterhardt built his durable Atlanta theater career, is a terrific supporting ensemble. Chief among them is City Springs favorite Billy Harrigan Tighe, typically seen as stalwart romantic leads, but now proving himself equally adept in more farcical pursuits. His gallant Sir Galahad is sorely absent during much of the second act, although the actor briefly appears to hilarious effect as that aforementioned Black Knight.
Credit: Ben Rose/BenRosePhotography.com
Credit: Ben Rose/BenRosePhotography.com
Nick Walker Jones excels in serving double (or triple) duty, too, most winningly as a newly gay Sir Lancelot, in addition to funny cameos as the Knight of Ni and as a French “taunter.” And who — besides Arthur, perhaps — could forget Roberto Mendez as the King’s undervalued attendant, the aptly named Patsy? He’s wonderful.
So is Kristine Reese, the only woman in the principal cast, whose Lady of the Lake turns out to be a real diva. Her “Whatever Happened to My Part?” solo is a showstopper, and she also shares memorable duets with Tighe’s Galahad (“The Song That Goes Like This”) and Uterhardt (“Find Your Grail”), the latter of which has her decked out in full Cher/Ann-Margret Vegas regalia. (The imported costumes, as well as the sets, are credited to the original Broadway designer, Tim Hatley.)
City Springs’ “Spamalot” even manages to work in a couple of clever plugs for the company’s upcoming production of “Cats” in May. Interestingly, however, despite deliberately spoofing “Fiddler on the Roof” during its “You Won’t Succeed on Broadway” number, there’s no similar plug here for the troupe’s season opener this fall — that’s right, “Fiddler on the Roof.”
With the traditional likes of “Cats” and “Fiddler” on the horizon, is there much doubt that, sooner or later, the Sandy Springs theater might eventually get around to presenting Lerner and Loewe’s tried-and-true “Camelot”? It’s just all the more reason to bask in this “Spamalot,” while the getting is good.
THEATER REVIEW
“Monty Python’s Spamalot”
Through March 26. 8 p.m. Thursdays-Fridays; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays. $45-$108. Byers Theatre (at the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center), 1 Galambos Way, Sandy Springs. 404-477-4365, cityspringstheatre.com.
Bottom line: A musical parody that’s all over the map, but almost always right on-target.
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