THE FANTASTICKS book and lyrics by Tom Jones, music by Harvey Schmidt, directed by Joseph Ziegler (Soulpepper). At the Young Centre for the Performing Arts (55 Mill). To March 24. $28-$60, 416-866-8666. See listing. Rating: NNNN
The Fantasticks debuted off-Broadway in 1960 and ran for an incredible 17,162 performances, making it the longest-running musical in theatre history. Soulpepper’s revival – the first in Toronto since 1995 – puts a new shine on this enduring and endearing slice of Americana by faithfully connecting with the dusty love story’s folksy charm and breezy humour.
Two neighbours in suburban postwar America attempt to engineer a romance between their children. The colluding fathers concoct a phony feud, and later build a wall between their houses that, as intended, fuels a romance between Matt (Jeff Lillico) and Luisa (Krystin Pellerin).
Lillico and Pellerin work well together onstage, producing lots of cute “aw shucks” moments. But while the kids are the clear focal point, the show benefits from a strong supporting cast. As conspiring dads Huckleby and Bellamy, Michael Hanrahan and William Webster have great chemistry, their effortless rapport best seen during the comic song It Depends On What You Pay, when they hire a team of travelling actors to assist in their scheme.
But a pair of players – an elderly Shakespearian monologist (Oliver Dennis) and a fake Native American who specializes in death scenes (Michael Simpson) – end up stealing the show. Giving the show a healthy dose of physical comedy, they elicit big laughs thanks in part to director Joseph Ziegler and choreographer Tim French’s ability to load jokes into every move.
Still, the most enduring strength of the show is classic songs like Try To Remember and Soon It’s Gonna Rain. They’re wonderfully accompanied by the traditional piano and harp, and convey the warm, nostalgic sweetness at the heart of The Fantasticks.
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