In her Diamond Head Theatre debut as Fanny Brice in “Funny Girl,” Becca Brake turns in a star-making performance, hitting all the right notes and delivering all her solo vocals with powerful confidence.
Not an easy task, considering she is working in the shadows of Barbra Streisand, who originated Fanny Brice on Broadway and later in the film.
Hello, gorgeous!
Brake starts off slowly, then going full-throttle-furiously, chewing her lines in rat-tat-tat swiftness, and conquering every one of her solo vocals with stunning flair and finesse.
Not surprisingly, audiences are cheering and applauding.
The show, about a hungry-for-fame singer from New York’s Lower East Side, features a musical score by Jule Styne (music) and Bob Merrill (lyrics), based on a book by Isobel Lennart. It’s a made-for-the-stage story of talent and eagerness overtaking the odds and challenges of the uncertainties of stardom, in the era of vaudeville and the Ziegfeld’s Follies.
John Rampage, DHT’s seasoned director-choreographer, is the perfect choice to helm and mount “Funny Girl,” which is the fourth revival of the classic over the past six decades, Rampage knows the road map to this one, steering his cast of 29 – tap dancing has been his specialty – with the spirit of the era. And yep, he knows how to party hearty with a corps of dancers who also sing…a strength of DHT musicals.
The show is well cast, with Mark Sanders (debonair, smooth talker) as gambler Nick Arnstein, who marries Brice; Shari Lynn (a stalwart Jewish mother, with a firm perspective of life), as Mrs. Brice; Joe Martyak (profound business man, and a star-maker), as Florenz Ziegfeld Jr.; and David Weaver (loyal, supportive best buddy of Fanny) as Eddie Ryan, the talented dancer-choreographer.
Brake carries the burden of singing and delivering the show’s familiar hit songs – “I’m the Greatest Star,” “Don’t Rain on My Parade” and “People” –all in Act 1, with a couple of duets with Nick. Brake still dominates the song count in Act 2, with such novelties as “Sadie, Sadie” and “Rat-Tat-Tat-Tat” rendered with the company.
Jenny Shiroma efficiently conducts the orchestra of seven; the opening overture here is not exactly the best (not the fault of the musicians).
The techies deliver where it counts: Dawn Oshima’s lighting design and Michael Minor’s sound design work hand in hand; Miya Yoshimoto’s hair and make-up design project the look and style of an earlier time.
Kyle Conner’s and Dawn Oshima’s set design – depicting backstage of the New Amsterdam Theatre in New York, circa 1924 — is a curiosity, with a pair of moveable stairways as the centerpiece. There’s a lot of old-time roll-on/roll of set pieces, like Fanny’s dressing room, lots of furniture (sofas, chairs, tables) and a couple of recurring “drops” (a faux brick wall, a reflecting and glittering curtain). It’s all effective, considering the time, and a reminder of old times before the new DHT launched, when set pieces were on wagons and relied on cast and stagehands to push and pull.
Playdates originally were through June 7, with performances at 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 7 p.m. Thursdays, 3 p.m. Saturdays and 3 pm. Sundays. Extension dates have been announced for Saturday June 13 and Sunday June 14.
Tickets are $43 to $70, at www.diamondheadtheatre.com or 808-733-0274…
And that’s Show Biz…
