CEDAR CITY — As bleak as headlines may be at times in our modern day, we’ve yet to run into the trouble that Cedar Valley Community Theatre’s most recent production has faced. In a musical that admits it might have a really awful title and too much exposition, Urinetown: The Musical created by Greg Kotis and Mark Hollmann grapples with what may come of a world where water is so scarce that it is “A Privilege to Pee”. The whole production was emblematic of the arts work that makes Cedar City so wonderful. Community came out in droves to Heritage Center Theater which also houses American Crossroads, and they were engaged from start to finish. It was a truly excellent night of theatre.
Design & Direction
The scenic design from Stewart was excellent. A unit set with tiered platforms and a backed by a graffitied brick wall set the stage for urban dystopia. The tagging include phrases like “Free to Pee” and the locally relevant “William Shakes-Pee-er”. A sliding door functioned both as secret passage, and landing place for newcomers to Urinetown. The set helped tell the story and allowed for multiple access points for actors to engage.
Costuming from Agnes Broberg were fantastic. The cast was generally in three groups. The poor people seeking to pee and scraping to get by, the lawyers and corporate types who oversaw the public utilities at great costs, and the officers who enforced the laws. Each group was distinctive and identifiable.
Strong direction from Stewart Shelly tied the technical and performance elements together. I loved cohesion from the ensembles and the way that the show balanced biting satire with dry wit. It allowed the characters to have high stakes while the show didn’t feel preachy or heavy handed to the audience. Music direction from Jacob Lee was strong as the ensemble and soloists were strong. Occasionally I felt there were issues with the sound mix as the live orchestra, well conducted by Carson Butler, and ensemble would overpower soloists and make their lines incomprehensible. However the tonal quality, pitch matching and overall musicality were strong.
Performances
Mallory Blue was excellent in the role of Little Sally. Little Sally asks the major dramatic questions, provides witty insight, and is at times unhinged. Blue captured all of these character aspects in her performance, and found ways to keep little moments high energy.
Sarah Shelly’s portrayal of Mrs. Penelope Pennywise was gifted across the board. She sang beautifully including some good operatic trill to hit high notes. She was salty and brash when necessary dealing with the urchins around her and being one of them. It was also hilarious to watch Sarah’s performance being overly flirtatious and coquettish in a show directed by her spouse. She leaned into the silliness of her character’s infatuations and was charming start to finish.
Brynley Jones was a hilarious and quirky Hope Caldwell, the embedded ally and eventual hostage of the Free to Pee rebellion. For a significant chunk of act two, her role is to sit bound and gagged in a chair and react as people contemplate exacting vengeance against her father with her demise. It takes strong character work to not make this feel rote or repetitive and Jones does this excellently. She was incredibly fun to watch and had strong dancing and singing chops to boot.
Other strong leads include Lincoln Paul as the story’s narrator, Officer Lockstock and Aaron Harris who plays protagonist turned martyr Bobby Strong. Paul had a wry humor that allowed his lines to punch, and he off set this with occasional bits of theatricality such as the jazz hands he would throw up any time he would refer to Urinetown The Musical! Harris was sincere and focused and had a nice range to go with the character. Shellee Younkin stole the show each time the character Mr. McQueen was onstage. An exaggerated gait and wildly over the top mannerisms were hilarious and made what could have been a minor role one of the true joys of this show.
Overall, great ensemble work was one of the key highlights of this show. Community theatres often struggle with having motivated movement and sustainable and interesting choreography. This was rarely the case with this show as the actors felt like they moved with purpose, engaged intentionally and understood each scene’s impact on the rest of the story. Choreographer Brittania Howe created choreography that worked within the skill ability of her actors. It was energetic, fun, and story driven, but it never felt like too much. Broadway demands high level dance skill with exceptional and challenging dancing. I like that Howe’s work highlights the range of who she’s working with.
Recommendation
Perhaps the most gratifying part of the evening was, as an outsider, being able to sit and watch a community rallying together for the cast. There was clearly a lot of familiarity amongst the actors, audience, and intermingling at intermission and after the show concluded. It was a funny and entertaining show with a good message done in a beautiful building rich with history. Community theatre succeeds when it makes great art from people invested in working together. That was on full display when I attended. Bravo. Go enjoy being part of something wonderful.
MORE INFO: Urinetown the Musical plays at Cedar City’s Heritage Center Theater (address) through January 31, 2026. Tickets are $10-15 and available online or at the door. For more information please see https://www.cedarcityut.gov/Calendar