Tuesday, July 3, 2012

YOU'RE A GOOD MAN, CHARLIE BROWN @ OTC


“You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown”
Words by Kristen Fogle

Plunging ahead with their first season, the Oceanside Theatre Company presents old favorite “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown.” Based on the comic strip by Charles M. Schulz, the musical—with music and lyrics by Clark Gesner—carries us through a series of vignettes in which we interact with all of our old favorites—Lucy, Schroeder, Sally, Linus, Snoopy—and yes, Charlie Brown.

A tried and true, come to life representation of these characters and all the mini subplots that made the comic endearing—yes, “Good Man” has got it! The action ping pongs from scenario to scenario—sometimes the crux of the action involving Charlie Brown trying to win the affection of the Little Red Haired Girl (always from afar), Lucy pushing ballots on her friends to find out if she is in fact crabby (no surprise, she is), Sally arguing with teachers about poor grades, Snoopy performing dare-devil maneuvers as the Red Baron (his fighter pilot alter ego), Linus attempting to express his affection for that silly blanket, Schroeder trying to thwart Lucy’s advances…any common theme you’ve seen in the strip emerges in one form or another on stage.

This is somewhat limiting, coming from an adult perspective, one who expects to see a concrete beginning, middle, and end, a conflict and resolution…but for fans of Schultz’s strip (which ran for __ years, I might add) and especially for children, the short scenes (I think I clocked the wee-est one at seven seconds) and lack of progression can be forgiven.

And if you can get used to being jostled from one scenario to the next (with no visible connection between any), there are some great characters brought to life by very capable entertainers. Snoopy is played with an effervescent energy by Jimmy Masterson (he has a great dog howl as well!), and Sloane Herrick is captivating as Lucy Van Pelt; Herrick plays Lucy in such a way that I can’t imagine another actress ever getting it as right as her, with just the right combo of annoying (but still very likable) little girl. Ashley Jenks is also an awfully cute Sally Brown, her affected voice and brilliant deliveries made her one of the funnier of the bunch. Playing Sally’s brother Linus is Dan Windham; the largest one up there, I’m a bit confused by this casting choice, especially compared with the very talented Zedrick Villegas Evans (Schroeder)…but who looks like he could be Windham’s son. Devin Collins’ Charlie Brown is a mix of self deprecated characterization paired with powerful vocals, giving the meek Charlie new energy and a lot of gusto I would not expect from the character.

In fact everyone has the pipes to carry this one off, and the harmonies and overlapping of vocals is stellar, even worthy of recording quality in places—a credit to musical director Jeff Lehman and the entire orchestra.

The set is also quite remarkable, and I’m impressed with how everything—the background and all the additional pieces (a mailbox, a fence, Snoopy’s doghouse, Lucy’s well known psychiatry booth—all of these elements are so well constructed and cartoonish, I was really quite impressed with Joanne Kissenger’s set design and execution. This blended well with costumes by Roslyn Lehman, interpreted straight from the comics but adapted well (color and movement wise) for the stage. (For instance, though I’m definitely too old, I’m still slightly obsessed with Lucy’s flouncy, can-do-anything-in-it girly cobalt outfit.)

“Charlie Brown” as a show may not rank very high on the charts for me plot wise, but the effort and payoff OCT exerts as a new company continues to impress and make me want to journey the 37 miles from SD for more.

“You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown”
Oceanside Theatre Company
6/20-7/1
217 N. Coast Hwy
Oceanside, CA 92054
760-433-8900
www.oceansidetheatre.org
 

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