Cast Kicks Off Its Shoes to Success

When I walked into a half-empty Agassiz Theatre this past Friday night to see the Harvard S.T.A.G.E. production of “Footloose,” I must admit my thoughts turned to the end-of-comp Crimson festivities and Quisque Jam I was missing. But a few hours later, my half-hearted wish to be elsewhere had morphed into a mixture of elation for a night well-spent and of pity for all those who had missed out on a truly amazing show.

From May 5 to 13, “Footloose” jazzes up the pillared Agassiz with suave moves, upbeat music, and neon leg-warmers. Produced by Taylor M. Owings ’08 and directed by Andrew B. Malone ’08 with music direction by Jeffrey W. Howard ’08 and choreography by Olivia A. Jennings ’06, the cast and crew of “Footloose” achieves the rare feat of putting on a show whose elements all worked together with ease.

They are professional, but they are also having fun—an essential attitude that seeps out into the audience to guarantee an enjoyable evening. Every member of the “Footloose” cast does their part with a professional quality born of talent and noticeable hard work. The music is marked by not just beauty, but life and character. The dancing is not only technically precise, but spirited.

City boy Ren McCormack (Kevin Barlowski) moves from foot-tapping, music blaring Chicago to the sleepy small town of Bomont, only to discover that the town’s head honcho Reverend Moore (Sean P. Bala ’09) has outlawed dancing. McCormack assumes the role of town troublemaker and sets out to bring the moves back to Bomont and romance to the Reverend’s daughter Ariel (Sarah Jayne Blackmore).

A production usually has an obvious “star of the show,” a particular performer who just captures the limelight. Not so in “Footloose.” But the lack of a star is not due to a lack of talent, but rather to a surplus—the entire cast is made up of such a hodgepodge of varying talents that it becomes almost impossible to single out one person for an extraordinary performance.

Barlowski, a sophomore at Emerson, is sensational—convincingly alternating between his role’s juxtaposing personalities as the tough, bad-ass rule-breaker and the sensitive high schooler who is trying to get over his father’s abandonment. Barlowski amazes with his ability to transform back-and-forth from an eighties’ Elvis Presley, gyrating all over the stage, to a touching Romeo, singing “Almost Paradise” in surprisingly sweet and melting tones to Ariel.

Bala’s resonating voice and touching facial expressions brought me, not just to tears, but to embarrassing nose-blowing by the end of “I Confess.” Rusty (Caroline A. Jennings ’09) beats out Carrie Underwood any day in her rendition of “Let’s Hear it for the Boy.”

Even if there is no particular superstar, Jonah C. Priour ’09 is definitely the show’s darling as the shy and hickish cowboy with his ceaseless spout of “Mama says.” His exaggerated western drawl, slouched walk, and eager country boy expressions are indisputably the icing of the show. Priour seems born for the part, effortlessly transitioning from his role this past March as the slick Billy Flynn in “Chicago.”

Good choreography is a necessary force for any musical, but for “Footloose” in particular, and here, the choreography is brilliant. Jennings deserves high praise for her work—dance numbers that easily fit both Broadway and an ’80s night club. Her greatest achievement is to provide a general, synchronized choreography while allowing each dancer to maintain their individual character. In turn, the group of enthusiastic and skilled dancers do justice to Jenning’s lively, flamboyant, and overall excellent choreography.

Appropriately the other driving force behind “Footloose,” the small but mighty orchestra under the direction of Howard created the rhythm of the show. The vibrating, wistful notes of the violin, played by Nina Han ’09, in “Learning to be Silent” perfectly complements Ethel’s (Caitlin Smythe) and Vi’s (Francesca S. Serritella ’08) ethereal voices.

The set, designed by Malone and Owings, is simple but effective—a couple of benches and a pulpit for the church, a set of lockers for the high school, a poker table and couch for the Reverend’s living room. But the set changes are no less impressive because of this simplicity—the props are moved off and on the stage so quickly and efficiently amidst music and dance numbers that the show had moved from one scene to the next before I knew it.

Harvard S.T.A.G.E. has produced a fun and swanky “Footloose” that will bowl over any theater buffs, music lovers, or anyone who just likes to “kick off their Sunday shoes” and have a good time. Taking its professionalism and pushing it over the top of the scales with the obvious enthusiasm and joy of its performers, “Footloose” has deservedly snagged the rank of musical of the year.

—Reviewer April B. Wang can be reached at abwang@fas.harvard.edu.