Reviewed by Tony Annicone

Salve Regina University Theatre’s closing show of their season is the hit 1959 musical “Gypsy” with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Arthur Laurents. This musical is about the true story of famous striptease artist, Gypsy Rose Lee. It’s the biography of Gypsy whose real name was Louise and her mother, Momma Rose. It’s about the Louise’s life from her early days in vaudeville with her younger sister, June Havoc. It shows after the death of vaudeville it led to her successful career in burlesque. However the star of this show is her tyrannical mother, Rose and director Tom Gleadow picks the incredible triple threat performer, Madisyn Mugavero, a multitalented actress to fill this role played by Ethel Merman, Angela Lansbury, Tyne Daly, Bernadette Peters and Patti Lupone on stage and Rosalind Russell and Bette Midler on film. Momma Rose pushes her two children into to show business at any cost, to fulfill the dream of stardom she never achieved herself. “Gypsy” is a story of ambition, suppressed dreams and sacrifice. Tom fills the show with many comic moments mixed with some poignant ones to flesh out this well known script. Madisyn, fellow Senior, Vanessa Sciolto as Louise and Junior student, Bradley Simpson as Herbie and their supporting cast fill this theatre with their vocal, acting and dancing skills to please the enthusiastic and appreciative audience on a brilliant masterpiece.

Gleadow directs and blocks this talented cast excellently. The many scene changes are handled superbly, meshing one scene into the next, keeping the show in constant motion with it spanning twenty five years. The marvelous scenic and lighting design is by Pippin McGowan while the gorgeous multitude of 1920’s costumes is by David Costa-Cabral especially terrific is the closing number outfit worn by Patty Lupone on Broadway. Also Joe Rossi changes the appearance of these college students with his make up and wigs, making them appear older then they are. Choreographer Kim Calore-Sedlak handles the transformation scene from younger children to older ones during a strobe light dance as well as tap dancing, Charleston, soft shoe and the hilarious strip numbers brilliantly. These dances give the show the energetic boost to carry the musical numbers forward. Outstanding dance numbers include the Tulsa dance, the Broadway section with hats and canes, Louise’s strip numbers, soft shoe dance by Rose and Herbie and the Toreadorables number. Another humorous aspect of this show is that Rose keeps the same music over and over again, but only changing the lyrics. The fabulous musical direction is by Jennifer Christina who plays keyboards and conducts a eleven piece orchestra and taught all the tongue twisting Stephen Sondheim lyrics and Jule Styne music to the talented vocalists.  What a terrific way to close out Salve’s theatre season.

Madisyn delivers a tour-de-force performance as Momma Rose, the stage mother of all mothers. She runs rough shod over her two daughters because she was never given the opportunity they have. Rose explains that is because her mother left her at an early age. Current day psychologists would have a field day with this real life woman. Madisyn makes this role her own, making it fit perfectly as well as making you forget anyone else you’ve seen playing this part. Her acting prowess is superb because she can have you laughing hysterically one minute and sobbing uncontrollably the next. Her strong voice shines in her numbers. “Some People” where she decides to leave Seattle with her girls and head to L.A. and the show stopping “Everything’s Coming Up Roses” where she has a mini nervous breakdown when June elopes with Tulsa. She also excels in “Together”, the trio number where she realizes that she, Louise and Herbie must stick together and her shining moment of glory in “Rose’s Turn”, a long soliloquy that stops the show with power and punch, leaving the audience cheering in the aisles. Madisyn also handles her romantic duets beautifully in “Small World” when she first meets Herbie then gives it a poignant rendition in Act 2 when he finally leaves Rose after she lets Louise become a stripper as well as the soft shoe “You’ll Never Get Away From Me” done in a Chinese restaurant. The tears flow profusely after Herbie leaves her during the reprise of “Small World” so poignantly One of her funniest numbers is “Mr. Goldstone” where she sings and the children hurl props at the booking agent and march around her, leaving the audience laughing merrily. Madisyn is marvelous in this role, delivering the goods in a whirlwind of energy from her first entrance coming down the aisle, to the final curtain where she and Vanessa as Gypsy leave the stage arm in arm. Brava on a job very well done!

Playing the role of Louise who became Gypsy Rose Lee is Vanessa Sciolto. She displays her strong acting prowess when she makes the transition from shy teenager into a sophisticated young woman during the course of the show. Vanessa’s lovely voice is heard in “If Momma Was Married” with June where they wish their mother would marry Herbie and leave them alone, “Together” trio with Rose and Herbie and solos in the most poignant song in the show, “Little Lamb” where she sings that she doesn’t know how old she is. She also displays the depth of the character as she grows more confident as an ecdysiast during the “Let Me Entertain You” segment in which became the real Gypsy Rose Lee’s signature number wherever she danced including Minsky’s. Vanessa is dynamite in the final confrontation scene with Rose when she finally tells her off at the end of the second act. Kudos on a terrific job. Best of luck to both Madisyn and Vanessa in the real world after their graduation this May.

Bradley does a marvelous job as Herbie, the sympathetic booking agent who falls madly in love with Rose. He gives the role great depth with his acting prowess. His voice is heard in the romantic duets with Madisyn and in the trio “Together” where he displays his dancing moves. Bradley has many comic moments but his best dramatic ones occur when he threatens Pastey when she swears in front of Rose and Louise in the burlesque theatre and when he finally develops a backbone to stand up to Rose’s bad behavior and obsession of being a stage mother after all these years and finally walks out on her. He delivers a gut punch to the audience and wins their applause as he leaves the stage. Dakota Benson is splendid as Dainty June. Her marvelous voice and dancing skills are observed as she dances up a storm with the boys. Dakota sings and dances with them in “Caroline” which also has a comical dancing cow and again in “Broadway” where she realizes that she can’t abandon Caroline after all and does marvelous splits in them. She also displays her powerful voice with Vanessa in “If Momma Was Married” as well as her excellent acting prowess as they wish Rose would marry him and leave them be. The younger June and Louise are excellently played by Annie and Rosie Rossi who are both in middle school. Both of them appeared at Theatre by the Sea two years ago in “The Music Man” and last year sang “God Bless America” together at Fenway Park.

The biggest scene stealers in this show are the three strippers in the second act played fabulously by Jillian Teresha as the trumpet playing Mazeppa, Maggie Corbutt as the twinkling, Electra and Jillian Brooks-Duval as Tessie Tura who was a former ballerina. They sing “You Gotta Get a Gimmick” which says you don’t need any talent but these three ladies have oodles of talent, dancing skills and singing voices. Another senior, Julia Curtin does a comic bit as the secretary in Act 1 and plays the mean spirited Pastey who yells at Rose and the girls in the strip club. Julia is a hoot in both roles. Another comic performer is Skyler Lasit who plays Cigar, L.A. and Mr. Weber and makes each of them different with his vocal talents in changing the timbre of his voice. A fabulous dancer in the show is Danny Landino as Tulsa. He uses his strong tenor voice to sell “All I Need Now Is the Girl” but it is Danny’s dancing skills that will leave you the most impressed. Another scene stealer is Abbie Burchard as Agnes in the second act. She’s a Toreadorable and delivers her comic one liners with glee. I have many happy memories of this show, having played Pastey back in 1979 for Warwick Players and also having seen Angela Lansbury as Rose in “Gypsy” in Boston back in 1974 in the Broadway revival. Kudos to everyone who worked on the magnificent musical. So be sure to catch “Gypsy” at Salve Regina Theatre, before Momma Rose and her gang leave town for good. Tell them Tony sent you to see this marvelous musical of this spring season.

GYPSY (10 to 14 April)

Salve Regina Theatre, Casino Theatre, 9 Freebody St, Newport, RI

1(401)341-2250 or web.ovationtix.com/trs/cal/29095