An Unforgettable Night of Comedy at the Spotlight Theatre!

by Evelyn Passanante

“Nothing is too wonderful to be true” at the Spotlight Theatre! Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, a musical written by Jeffery Lane with music and lyrics by David Yazbek, is a hit at a local community theater in Lansdowne, PA. Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, an 11-time Tony nominated musical, based on the 1988 movie of the same name, is a comedy telling the story of two con men with the names of Lawrence Jameson and Freddy Benson, who begin to work together to swindle a young female out of 50,000 dollars.

To set the tone of this show, thanks to Tom Mostek, beautiful marble-like pillars with crawling vines on each, flanked both sides of the stage, putting the audience straight into the fictional French-Rivera Resort entitled Beaumont-sur-Mer. To further envelope the audience into the French-Rivera, Joe Ward (Director, Lighter Designer and Sound Designer) designed beautiful lighting that switched to match the tone of each scene, and to accompany that, designed the perfect sound for the show. This wonderful musical was under the phenomenal music direction of Madison Oreski. And of course, no show goes up without a dedicated crew consisting of: Charles Hoffman (Light Operator), Frank Friestedt (Sound Operator), Logan Hally (Projection Operator), Lisa Verzella (Stage Manager), and Eric Raymond and Chas Thomas (Stage Crew).

The actors, without a doubt, pulled the audience into this fictional world with their first step on stage. The talent these actors brought was out-of-this world. Most notably, John Casertano (Lawrence Jameson) and Patrick Flood (Freddy Benson), who not only acted incredibly with their facial expressions and phenomenal voices, but also throughout their entire body. They mastered full-body comedy like it was second nature, especially in the Act II song titled “Dirty Rotten Number.” Liz Murgidi (Christine Colgate) brought a hilarious character to the stage with her gorgeous voice, the most memorable being the song "Here I Am". The comedic timing of Jeffery Barg (Andre Thibault) and Sheli Hally (Muriel Eubanks) were simply exquisite. “Like Zis, Like Zat” had the audience's attention the entire time, between their dancing, laughing, and delivery of jokes, as well as the silly accents used.

This cast had incredible chemistry with each other, but also with the audience. The audience was constantly laughing at each line and dancing with every song. Each actor was easy to hear and the diction that every individual used on stage made them easy to understand. The ensemble and featured actors who really brought the whole performance together, included: Meg Cranney (Jolene Oakes), Amelia SanFilippo (Woman 1, Lenore, Dance Captain), Valentina Raffaelli (Woman 2, Sophia), Melissa Santangelo (Woman 3, Renee), Jim McManus (Man 1), Matt Demos (Man 2), and Madison Oreski, Emily-Grace Murray, Tammy Sarosy, Gwen Armstrong Barker, Eileen Wiley, Dianne Daisey-Williford (Usherettes). It was clear to each and every audience member that the cast had worked extremely hard to portray the complicated relationships seen on stage.

The song the audience seemed to enjoy the absolute most had to be “Love is my Legs”, which included physical comedy, perfectly choreographed by Chloe Sierka and Chloe Hally and with the assistance of Dance Captain Amelia SanFilippo, including a gospel choir, filled with simplistic moves infused with character choices and facials, which made it impossible to look away! With this, the sound quality was exceptional.

Costumes (costumer not mentioned) tied this hilarious and entertaining production up with a bow. Every costume was tailored to the actors, perfectly embodying their characters and individual personalities. The colors brought the cast together in a unified and fun way, with notes of yellows and pinks. The wigs seen on the characters Christine Colgate and Jolene Oakes were curled to perfection and bounced with each step. 

I would recommend each and every person who wants a refreshing display of comedy to see this show. The performance had the entire crowd leaving with light hearts and smiles from ear to ear. Do not miss out on your chance to see Dirty Rotten Scoundrels for a limited run at the Spotlight Theatre! Performances run now through September 21st, you can purchase tickets by clicking the link below:

www.ticketleap.events

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

 Presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI. www.MTIShows.comA Musical Comedy Book by Jeffrey Lane - Music and Lyrics by David Yazbek - Based on the film, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, written by Dale Laune