The thoroughly delightful Villages Musical Theater production of “Crazy For You,” can be described in three words: “dance, dance, dance.”
Director Bill Davis and Choreographer Helene Yelverton concocted a rollicking, entertaining and toe-tapping dance extravaganza that opened Saturday night to a thunderous ovation from a packed house in Savannah Center.
“Who could ask for anything more?” Davis said afterwards, quoting lyrics from “I Got Rhythm,” a Gershwin song and show-stopping dance number in the production.
The musical runs Sunday and Monday at 7 p.m. and a few seats remain for each performance. Jean Butler directs a live orchestra and it adds power to the production.
“Crazy For You” features the songs of George and Ira Gershwin and a cast of about 55 Villagers.
The two leads — the Unsinkable Sue Schuler and Hoofer-extraordinaire Carter Poust — both turn in dynamic performances. The plot is simple: country girl meets city boy and they find happiness by putting on a show.
“I’ve worked with Sue on a lot of different shows,” Davis said after opening night. “I think this is her best performance.”
In addition to dancing up a storm, Schuler did justice to such Gershwin standards as: “Embraceable You,” “But Not For Me,” and “Someone to Watch Over Me.”
Schuler found a kindred soul in the character of Polly Baker – a rough and tumble gal from a Western town who falls for a slick but failing dancer (Poust as Bobby Childs) from the Big Apple.
“I was a tomboy when I was growing up and this is a role I can identify with,” Schuler said while greeting a horde of well-wishers in the lobby.
“This was a big cast, but everybody came together and worked hard,” she added. “There was a lot of dancing and we worked hard to do it right.”
Poust is becoming a regular on Villages’ stages. Last fall he starred in “Company,” and has appeared in numerous dance revues.
“This was a demanding, complex role and Carter was great,” Davis said. Poust was tapping, kicking, jumping and jiving all night long.
His only problem was keeping his fake moustache on, as he played a dual role as Bobby and also the bearded Bela Zangler. Poust’s moustache fell off a couple of times, but he kept things moving and didn’t panic. It all seemed part of the act.
“The toughest part of this role was keeping my moustache on,” he said. “The tape wouldn’t stick because I was sweating so much.”
Poust had reason to sweat. He seemed to display every kind of dance style, including tap, ballet, waltz, ballroom, Western and he was also a part of a chorus line.
He also displayed some vocal range on such numbers as, “Nice Work If You Can Get It,” “I Can’t Be Bothered Now” and “Slap That Bass.” He seemed to reach an emotional peak near the end, singing “They Can’t Take That Away From Me.”
Bearded Bill Krone was fine as the ornery and obnoxious hotel owner Lank Hawkins. Linda “Bert” Berthiaume played it hot as Irene, Bobby’s snobby girlfriend Irene, who eventually falls for Lank Hawkins. She turned up the heat on a slinky, revealing number, “Naughty Baby.”
Jack Filkins more than held his own as Bela Zanger, the Broadway producer with a funny accent and towering ego. A highlight came when he and Poust looked like drunken twins, singing and dancing their way through, “What Causes That.”
Janet Maloney was equally adept as the snooty Mrs. Lottie Childs, Bobby’s rich mother, and sweet talking Cathye Leshay and Mollie McCarthy were ultra cute as chorus girls hanging around. Singing cowpokes Gerry Sherman, Paul Young and Marty Butler, turned in a first-class country sound on “Bidin’ My Time.”
But the dance numbers that really dominated this show. Yelverton’s choreography seemed like a cross between Agnes de Mille and Busby Berkeley.
She did everything here from country hoedowns (“Slap That Bass”) to big Broadway numbers (“I Got Rhythm”) to an oh-so-elegant ballroom number with Bobby and Polly (“Shall We Dance).
Davis also deserves credit for keeping the big cast working together, staging the scenes and using all the scenery props.
“This is a big, complex show and you’ve got to keep it moving and keep everyone working together,” he said.
Bill Krone agreed.
“Bill Davis deserves so much credit for pulling this off,” he said. “He understood what this show is all about. He kept us together and created a real sense of unity. This cast has great chemistry.”
Mollie McCarthy added, “there were no divas in this cast. We all felt we played a part in making it work.”
“Crazy For You” may be big, but it isn’t that complicated. Krone understands the essence of this show.
“It’s all about dancing,” he said.
