Empress Theatre’s TARZAN is a Must See

MAGNA — Although I grew up loving the Disney film of Tarzan and blasting the soundtrack in my room, I had yet to see the stage musical with music and lyrics by Phil Collins and book by David Henry Hwang. I was apprehensive about seeing the stage adaptation of this classic story of an orphan boy raised by gorillas. This weekend, I decided to take a chance on the Empress Theatre’s production, directed by Cheryl Cripps Richardson, of Tarzan.

SCENIC

The Empress Theatre is a small black box style theatre with the audience seating on opposite sides on the stage. This creates for staging that is a bit different than most traditional spaces. The company seems to be well adept at staging for this small theatre. The performance space was well used and felt full but not crowded. The jungle set, designed by Cheryl Cripps Richardson and Celeste Reese, was painted onto the theatre walls, giving more performance area. Two ropes hung down from ceiling mounts and made it possible for Tarzan to swing across the set. A raised platform on the main set allowed for more use of levels, which added visual interest as well as function. Light design by David Bruner helped add to the varied intensity or playfulness of each scene, especially during “As Sure as Sun turns to Moon.”

The theatre was hot enough to feel like Africa and I was envious of Tarzan’s costume with the heat. The costumes from Candice Jorgensen were fun with wide fabric fringing on all of the gorillas. There were bits of color woven in the costumes and braided in the performers hair which was nice way to add a splash of color and help distinguish the different gorillas, especially at the start of the show. When the adult Tarzan, played by Tyler Rasmussen, I was intrigued by the choice to have Tarzan played with a beard in contrast to other productions. The choice did make sense as Tarzan wouldn’t know or care about shaving social conventions.

ACTING

Tyler Rasmussen did well in the physicality of Tarzan, especially in his hand and wrist moments when he is pointing at items in front of him or when he is resting on his knuckles. Rasmussen is a strong singer, although there were moments he did get off key such as the ending of “take my hand, there’s a place I need to show you.” “Son of Man” was among Rasmussen’s strong vocal moments, but one of my favorite scenes and song was “You’ll Be in My Heart Reprise” with Tarzan and Kala (played by Ashley Bates).

Bates and Rasmussen blended beautifully with Bates’s low tones weaving under the Rasmussen’s higher tones. Bates had a soothing voice that felt like cooing primate sounds mixed with a mother’s lullaby, and was ideal for Kala. The production may be titled Tarzan, but Bates brought such a strong portrayal of the adoptive mother that it also felt like a story about Kala. Her pain over losing her child in the beginning and her fierce mother instinct for an orphaned baby made me want her in my own parenting village. She was my favorite character and performer of the show, though my kids told me their favorite was Terk (Scott Carr) and I could see why.

 

Terk (Carr) was playful, laid back, and funny. Carr had a great voice that was well suited for the scatting of “Trashin’ the Camp.”He also had my kids giggling at his antics while trying to tie knots with Tarzan but getting tied up instead. Carr did well at bringing out the comedic moments but not drawing the audience attention away from where it needed to be.

Jane, played by Sophie Manzanares, added a playful sense of fun to the production and had a wonderful naiveness when it came to recognizing her own feelings for Tarzan that was encapsulated in her enthusiasm for adventures and scientific discoveries. The father daughter chemistry between Manzanares and Scott Shill (Professor Porter) was so enjoyable to watch. Shill had delightful balance of an enthusiastic scientist and a devoted father.

Ian Bates as Clayton was as dislikable as one could hope for in a villian, to the point I wanted to should “boooo” during his bow. He came off as perfectly arrogant.

SINGING AND SOUND

This production had a very strong ensemble. Leads get a lot of credit, but a strong ensemble takes a production up several notches. One of the joys of a small intimate theatre is being able to hear individual cast members in the ensemble. I heard incredible voices, such as  that of ensemble member Tony Sao, each time new actor was near my seat. In addition to solid singing the entire ensemble danced very well. The choreography by Dylan Panter was truly a joy to watch.

There were multiple sound issues with the performance I attended. The music choice for the pre-show and for intermission were distracting from the production environment, and broke some of the show illusion for me. It also proved to be a problem when during the opening musical number when the preshow music came bursting through at the opening solo of Tarzan’s Father (played by Zach Anderson). Anderson kept his cool, singing a cappella at moments while the sound operator sorted out the issue. Had the pre-show music fit with the show, this might not have been as jarring. Other sound issues include echoing mics that at max levels, and Tarzan’s voice drowning out Jane’s during “Different.”

CONCLUSION

Over all this production was quite enjoyable to watch, even for my five year old who came along with me. There are some fight sequences that can be a little scary for young child, but this was a production that can be enjoyed by a wide range of ages. If you haven’t had the opportunity to attend a production of Tarzan, the Empress Theatre is a fun intimate theatre experience with a strong ensemble that makes you feel as if you were a part of the action. You’ll find that “I Need to Know” is as true for the characters as it is for audiences.