By DAVID DUPONT
BG Independent News
Staging the musical “Big Fish” is not a small task, and the Perrysburg Musical Theatre is up to it.
The story, first a novel, then Tim Burton-directed movie, then a musical, is a sprawling father-son tale that blends uplifting fantasy with real-life drama. At the very big heart of the musical is the hero Edward Bloom (D. Ward Ensign), a small town salesman given to telling grand stories about his life that may be true, at least in some fashion. As he faces death, the world of those stories collides with real life.
Elizabeth Cottle and Garrett Leininger during “Two Men in My Life.”
“Big Fish,” which is making its Northwest Ohio premiere, is being presented Thursday, June 23, through Saturday, June 25, and Sunday, June 26, at 2 p.m. in the Perrysburg High School auditorium. Tickets are $13. Visit http://www.perrysburgmusicaltheatre.org/.
“Big Fish” is a great fit for the Perrysburg summer troupe. The show calls for a cast of more than 40, many of them young people. It exudes a sense of community whether in Bloom’s hometown or the circus he works for.
The play’s technical demands are a challenge. The plot cuts back and forth between present and past, from a kid’s bedroom and a bewitched forest. The production, led by the creative team of C. Jordan Benavente, Julie Bermudez, Ensign and Nicole Spadafore with set design by Dave Nelms, pulls this off seamlessly. The high point being the daffodil-infused climax of the first act.
The show is more than a visual wonder.
Support Independent News In Bowling GreenAs well as a large ensemble it demands three strong singing actors for the central parts of the fantasist Edward Bloom, his wife Sandra (Elizabeth Cottle), and their son Will (Garrett Leininger). All have strong, expressive voices, and solid acting skills. And Cottle and Ensign effectively portray their characters from their teens into late middle age.
Ensign needs to embody both the real life father, who can be overbearing, with the hero of his stories, who is resourceful and an underdog. Ensign draws a straight line from the man who was – at least as he tells it – and the man who is.
He makes it believable that his wife is so devoted, despite the fact that he’s frequently absent because he’s a traveling salesman and neglects his household duties. For her part, she seems bemused by his tales.
Less forgiving is Will. From a young age (Isaac Bermudez), he’s been skeptical of his father’s tales, even as he continues to be enthralled by them. A bookish, kind of nerdy kid, Will Bloom grows up to be reporter like so many budding skeptics do.
With his father dying, he wants to get to know the real man. He believes his father’s stories are a smokescreen.
His wife Josephine (Esther Swain) is more insightful. “Your father is telling you these stories for a reason. If you understand the stories, you’ll understand the man.”
Will tries. He and Josephine catalog the stories and their many variations. But it is the deed to a house, a physical piece of evidence, that seems to confirm his suspicions, and leads him to learning a story about his father that he’d never heard.
All this is told in soaring melody. Andrew Lippa wrote the score to accompany the book written by John August, who also adapted the Daniel Wallace novel for the screen.
The music has that gloss of pop Broadway, touching on a variety of styles, old swing, country and rock ‘n’ roll. But when it really wants to deliver it turns on the voices in rousing fashion. “Be the Hero” sets the theme early on as performed by Edward. In the end it becomes Will’s song.
“Be the hero” expresses Edward’s core belief, as do his numbers “Out There on the Road” and “Start Over.”
Will’s troubled relationship with Edward is spelled out in “Stranger.”
Cottle delivers on her two numbers which cut to the heart of her character’s dilemma. In “Two Men in My Life” she ponders being torn by her husband’s whimsy and her son’s questions. Then she delivers the heartbreaking ballad “I Don’t Need a Roof.”
The score also makes good use of songs to move the action along. That’s particularly true of “Close to You,” as the circus master Amos (Chris Stack) slowly doles out clues to the young Sandra’s identity to a love-struck Edward. The song carries us through his three years in the circus in a breeze.
As Edward’s stories unfold he encounters a range of colorful characters. We meet his high school sweetheart Jenny Hill (Emma Hayward), the town bully Don Price (Jake Myers) and then the giant who scares the town, played Chuck Kiskaddon. There’s also a witch (Amanda Reisner). They all come together in several swirling production numbers.
“Big Fish” never lets its more outlandish touches overwhelm its truly touching moments. When the spectacle and love story come together as they do in the first act closer “Daffodils,” it’s a wonder.
Perrysburg Musical Theatre earns bragging rights not only for being the first troupe hereabouts to bring this strong new musical to the local stage, but also by doing in such fine style. I suspect people will be telling stories about this production for years to come.
