Spamalot

The humor in Spamalot had me almost rolling out of my chair and close to peeing in my pants like the “Brave Sir Robin” did in many of the scenes. The only reason why such a corny play can be so entertaining is because of the creativity involved. There aren’t very many productions out there like Spamalot and therefore the unique plot captivates many audiences. Spamalot can be described as a spoof on “the arts.” In the musical number “The Song That Goes Like This”, the cast members sing a song that sounds like it would be the song that “starts of soft and low and ends with a kiss.” In reality they can’t wait for the song to end and are continually making comments on how the song irritates them.

As in most theatrical productions at Playhouse Square, the acting highly impressed me. The Lady of the Lake played by Merle Dandridge, had a voice that could reach many graceful octaves during supposedly “serious” numbers, while at other times her tone appeared more modern. Her voice was comparable to Mariah Carey’s or Whitney Houston’s. Dandridge’s acting also gained my attention when she was able to define her character even in song. Her skill in vocals and comedy made her the most appropriate woman for the part.

My favorite comedians in Spamalot were probably Patsy played by Jeff Dumas and Sir Robin played by James Beaman. Dumas was a master at producing horse sound effects with coconut halves. Although he had only a few lines, he surprised the audience with his few, but hysterical, words of wisdom. In the second act, Beaman began his comedy and throughout the play never stopped adding to the performance. His solo song “You Won’t Succeed on Broadway” finalized my view of him as a talented actor and comic.

Although the humor in Spamalot had me roaring with laughter, the writers went slightly over board with the sexually jokes. I could have done without a few of those scenes and the plot of the play would not have been spoiled. In my opinion, there were a few too many crude body movements and middle finger gestures, especially in the French Castle scene.

I was also disappointed in the number of scenes in which the other female actresses seemed to lose their clothes. Ending up in a bikini at the end of every scene does not constitute good acting. Women are worth so much more and it saddens me to not see their talent accurately displayed.

The best part of the entire play was the fact that the cast interacted with the audience and made them sing, dance and laugh right along with the show! I truly loved watching the amusing and engaging performance of Spamalot. Spamalot is showing from March 31st, 2009 to April 5th, 2009. To buy tickets and for more information go to playhousesquare.com.