SALT LAKE CITY — As a staple of Salt Lake Acting Company’s season, Saturday’s Voyeur knows how to cater to its audience. With jokes about everything from the Gateway Mall to the “beard exception” at Brigham Young University, nothing in Utah culture is off limits. Would this musical, newly written each year, work anywhere else? Probably not. But that’s what makes Saturday’s Voyeur so unique—and such a fun experience for local audiences.
closes August 30th
For this edition of Saturday’s Voyeur, director Cynthia Fleming and lyricists Allen Nevins and Nancy Borgenicht focus heavily on same-sex marriage, Ordain Women’s Kate Kelly’s excommunication from the LDS Church, and LDS Church founder Joseph Smith struggling with his past demons. There isn’t one driving plotline; it’s more like watching a string of thoughts from the past year. And that’s totally fine with me since this production is more about the humor, and inside jokes, than any one succinct point.
With so many converging storylines, it’s difficult to pick a favorite. That’s not to say each subplot doesn’t have its moments. There’s Eula (Jenessa Bowen), a ghost who roams the grounds of Temple Square along with the statues of Brigham Young (Justin Ivie), Moroni (Eb Madson), and Joseph Smith (Robert Scott Smith)—who is harassed by Internet zombie pioneer wives for his indiscretions. Quips about the Priesthood being closed to women because they show off, and discuss, the annual Hot Shots calendar from Camp Williams are rather amusing. And there’s a fairly poignant take on Sister Morton (Olivia Custodio) being married to President Morton (Ivie), a closeted gay man attracted to Brother Fawker (Alexis Baigue)—especially with the recent Supreme Court decision making same-sex marriage legal across the country.
The Kate Kelly (Anna Harris) narrative with her fairy godmother/Heavenly Mother (Custodio) is particularly appropriate in this setting. The song “Authentic Pits”—based on the Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams”—is one of the best in the show as it pokes fun at women who wear T-shirts under their clothes. Many of the songs, such as “Worthy, Worthy, Worthy” and “Misogyny” are highly entertaining and show off Nevins and Borgenicht’s talent for writing lyrics. They also walk the line of being offensive, but are never completely disrespectful.
For the most part, the parodies work—and boy are there some doozies. The one exception is “Beat it Off”—sung to the tune of Taylor Swift’s “Shake it Off.” I’m not sure if it was my inability to hear all the words, or if it just wasn’t a good song to imitate. Either way, it was only a minor blip in an otherwise superb choice of songs to parody. Speaking of which, the band, conducted by Kevin Mathie on keyboards and featuring Gar Ashby (guitar), David Evanoff (drums), and Scott Harris (woodwinds) were spectacular, bringing the songs to life—even if it was just a few bars between scenes.
Photo’s by dav.d Photography
Likewise, Fleming’s direction and choreography are exceptional. She makes great use of the space, even when the entire cast is on stage such as in Kate Kelly’s karaoke moment, “Authentic Life.” The set and costumes by Keven Myhre and lighting design by James M. Craig emphasize Fleming’s choreography by showing the audience what you should be watching, especially if there’s a lot of action on stage. Shea Madson’s sound design captures most of the dialogue and singing. However, it seemed if an actor was standing between the two hanging microphones, they were harder to understand.
Although most of the actors are tremendous, taking on many different roles, Ivie, Bowen, Custodio, and Smith really steal the show. There isn’t a weak link in the cast as Elena Dern, Aaron Eskelson, Camille Evans, Terry Lee McGriff, Erica Renee Smith, and Hayden Warzek are also fantastic in their various character portrayals.
Every time I thought Saturday’s Voyeur was about to cross the line, they pulled back—that’s the brilliance of this show. Still, some may find the subject matter offensive. Saturday’s Voyeur is definitely designed for a specific audience and, after reading this review, you should already know if this is something you should see or not. But take it from me, it’s definitely worth watching. Plus, you can take in your own food and drinks!
