3/14/2017 0 Comments Review: SPAMILTON falls flatBy Mark Shreppe
Parodies seem to be having a renaissance. Thrones! The Musical Parody has played the Apollo since last summer (not to be confused with Graeme of Thrones at the Broadway Playhouse); Strangest Things! The Musical continues its open run at the Greenhouse Theater Center and two Hamilton parodies are playing the Windy City at the same time: Shamilton, from the same people behind Thrones, and now, Spamilton, from the team behind Forbidden Broadway. Fans of Forbidden Broadway will be pleased to know that Gerard Alessandrini has done nothing to update the formula he created back in the 1980's - sure, the references are (somewhat) updated,
but the jokes are the same, the structure hasn't been touched, and don't worry - there are still puppets.
Alessandrini's bitter jabs at Broadway and the like play as personal rather than playful. Some moments land, of course, but many - like the dozen or so insults thrown at Disney, lead one to believe that Mr. Alessandrini's parents may have been mugged by Mickey himself. Why so angry? While the ensemble is fiercely talented, the writing leaves much to be desired. It would be one thing to present Spamilton as late-night fare to an inebriated audience - perhaps they'd enjoy the basic lyrical changes such as "I'm not gonna let Broadway rot," (I'm not throwin' away my shot), "Straight is back" ("You'll be back) or "The Fresh Prince of Big Hair." (I'm cringing just typing this). Most insultingly, some of the source material's original lyrics go unchanged, as if the Spamilton team had to spit out a first draft and simply hoped we wouldn't notice. Fittingly, Yando Lopez as Lin Manuel Miranda is lost in the shuffle, just as Miranda himself was amongst his Hamilton peers. A voice like butter just doesn't cut it when the production demands so much physical comedy. The stand out of the evening was Christine Pedi as the Diva(s) - her impressions were spot-on and her timing impeccable. It's unfortunate that she isn't sticking around as part of the Chicago company. Other performers of note include Eric Andrew Lewis as Wayne Brady playing Leslie Odom Jr. playing Burr (a joke added, assumingly, because Brady was in attendance). His incredible voice puts him in serious contention to move on to the actual Hamilton production. Michelle Lauto is also wonderful as the production's resident female performer. She can sing anything and is quite funny until she loses steam with a round of celebrity impressions towards the end. It would be one thing if Spamilton took itself less seriously - but when you're saying Book of Mormon lacks wit, you better not throw away your shot to prove that you can do better. And at $89 a pop to get into the room where it happens, I'd recommend staying at home and entering the Hamilton lottery again instead. Not Recommended. Spamilton continues at the Royal George Theater through May 14th, 2017.
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