Especially when I’m down in Southern Utah I like to try and support as many theaters as I can. So while I was ostensibly down there to review the Utah Shakespeare Festival I also reviewed Grease at Tuacahn and changed my plans around when I heard American Crossroads Theatre was putting on the Broadway classic Chicago as part of their ambitious summer theatre series. I’d never been to anything ACT has put on (previously the Simonfest which I’d also never attended) and I was honestly a little nervous about them taking on something as challenging as Chicago. However, it turns out my worries were unfounded and they blew me away with the quality of this wonderful production. I highly recommend it and now my only regret is that I won’t be down there to see their 3 other shows currently running including The Music Man which is a favorite of mine. I’m sure they crush that as well as they executed Chicago.

While I admire any company in Utah that tries to push themselves and their audience with edgier material it can at times be a bit of a rough sit for audiences. I’m just guessing but I don’t think that material often gets the same quality of talent auditioning as more family-friendly fare. This is why I went into Chicago at ACT with modest expectations. Fortunately, I’m happy to say I was pleasantly surprised by what I was presented with. One honestly couldn’t ask for more in a community theatre production of this musical in almost every area. It really is impressive what director Rebekah Bugg has pulled off here on what I can only imagine isn’t the greatest budget.

The best part of this Chicago is actually the 2 main male performances with Actors’ Equity member Trent Dahlin playing lawyer Billy Flynn and Taylor J Wilkes as sad sack husband Amos Hart. Amos’ song “Mister Cellophane” is one of my favorite songs from the show and he captures the despair of the character most vividly. Meanwhile Dahlin has all the showmanship that’s needed for the sleezy lawyer to the stars of his character. One might say he “razzle dazzle(s)” us with his performance.

Of course, any staging of this musical also needs 2 strong leading ladies with Tamara Reber as Velma Kelly and Gig Jones as Roxie Hart. Neither worries about making their characters likable or endearing. They are as sleezy as Billy but have even less of a moral backbone than that character, which isn’t much. I particularly liked how Jones plays up the sociopathic nature of Roxie especially when dealing with Amos. She doesn’t think twice before saying she’s pregnant if it will get more attention and then uses it as a tool to control Amos and even Billy. Margaret A Dunn is full of personality as Mama Morton and the rest of the ensemble are large and up for whatever is thrown at them.

Chicago is known for being a dance heavy show originally created by Broadway legend bob Fosse (he co-wrote the book with Fred Ebb and directed/choreographed the original production.) The plot is minimal and even on Broadway the set and lighting are simple, so it is all about the jazzy songs and the entertaining dance numbers and the team at ACT seem to understand this. The ensemble is large with a dozen or so dancers all in time and invested in the edginess of the piece. I particularly enjoyed all the women in “Cell Block Tango” especially our murderess who is married to the Mormon. That got some good laughs in Cedar City. The lighting for especially this scene is iconic with its bold colors and it all looks great creating the slinky sexy environment you want for this musical.

There are times when transitions are a little slow and the big echoey Heritage Center Theater is challenging to fill up (especially if a microphone fails) but I honestly think this production of Chicago is every bit as good as both of the equity musicals I saw at Utah Shakespeare Festival. So well done ACT. They should be very proud of all that they’ve accomplished, and like I said, I just wish I lived nearby so I could see the other 3 shows this season. Chicago is playing through August 8th, and I highly recommend it to anyone in the Cedar City area. Tickets can be purchased here. It’s a jazzy good time!

Chicago has music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb. Ebb and Bob Fosse wrote the book and like I said Fosse directed and choreographed the original production which opened in 1975. It is based off of a play of the same name by Maurine Dallas Watkins. The current revival opened in 1996 and is now the longest-running American musical in Broadway and West End history. The 2002 film adaptation by director Rob Marshall won 6 Oscars including Best Picture.

I would love to be the theatre critic for all of Southern and Northern Utah but these areas require travel which can be very expensive. I know many of you really appreciate those reviews but I can’t do them alone. I need your help!  If you enjoy my writing and would like me to review your production I’d love to. I also have a patreon which is a great way to support my shorter logs for shows I don’t get to review. I have some really fun perks like bonus episodes, patron polls and monthly Q&As with actors, directors and writers. Please take a look  here.