Review: “Damn Yankees” is just darned good

Review: “Damn Yankees” Words & Music by Richard Adler & Jerry Ross. Book by George Abbott & Douglass Wallop. Musical Direction by Ben Whiteley. Choreographed by Denis Jones. Directed by Mark S. Hoebee. With Christopher Charles Wood, Patti Cohenour, Hans Altwies, Chryssie Whitehead, Hugh Hastings, Nancy Anderson, Allen Fitzpatrick, Carol Swarbrick, Julie Briskman, Richard Ziman, Bob De Dea. Now through May 20, 2012 at The 5th Avenue Theatre.

Lola (Chryssie Whitehead) and Mr. Applegate (Hans Altwies) in Damn Yankees at The 5th Avenue Theatre. Photo: Chris Bennion

More Golden Oldies are on tap over at the 5th Avenue Theatre with their currently running production of the 1955 musical comedy hit, “Damn Yankees”. In case you’re a musical theater Neanderthal, “Damn Yankees” is basically a retelling of the Faust legend. A paunchy, middle aged fan of the beleaguered Washington Senators baseball team named Joe Boyd sells his soul to the devil who in turn bewitches the middle aged shmoe into a hot bodied, twentysomething super athlete named Joe Hardy, who manages to turn things around for the Senators in their quest to win the pennant and beat those, “damn Yankees” (their arch rivals, the New York Yankees). Meanwhile, the shmoe’s sweet wife pines for her missing husband, and the Devil (aka “Mr. Applegate”) tries every trick in the book to make sure Joe does not escape his clutches, and utilizes his sexiest minion, the lovely Lola, to make sure Joe ends up in Hell by the end of the show.

Like many musicals of that era, and particularly the work of famed Broadway writer/director George Abbot, the book of “Damn Yankees” is pure farce…Mr. Abbott’s goal was to always get on with the big numbers and never mind messing around too much with plot. It’s musical theater at its lightest…and, there’s nothing wrong with that. “Damn Yankees” has always been about those great songs by Adler & Ross: “Shoeless Joe From Hannibal, MO” and “Heart” and “Whatever Lola Wants” and “Two Lost Souls”. Modern musicals work really hard on having complicated, plot driven books but do you really leave the theater remembering any of the music from most of them? The light weight standards of the Golden Age of Broadway Musical Theater took the exact opposite course: who cares about plot as long as you have Gwen Verdon singing “Whatever Lola Wants”? (And, Rodgers & Hammestein of course, had complicated plots AND brilliant songs.)

The 5th Avenue’s version of “Damn Yankees” might have been time warped out of 1955. It’s good, cleanish fun for the entire family and unlike the big revival in the 90’s which added Jerry Lewis schtick and jock-strapped, multi-ethnic baseball players to the mix, the 5th’s production is a purist’s delight. And, for my taste, a tad dull because of it. Oh, don’t get me wrong; this production is the usual gorgeously set designed (Rob Bissinger); and lighted (Tom Sturge); and costumed (Alejo Vietti) and everything else designed by the superb team at the 5th. And, the music direction is lovely and the excellent choreography by Denis Jones is a major highlight. But, it all seems a bit…dated and tired. What’s wrong with having jock-strap clad, hunky multi-ethnic baseball players singing “Heart” on stage? This show could use a bit more zex appeal.

The cast tries hard to add that zip but  many of the performances seem a bit generic. Christopher Charles Wood as Joe Hardy has the required big voice and muscular bod to play the role but he’s awfully family friendly and the slightest bit milquetoast.  The same thing with Chryssie Whitehead’s Lola…the actress has a lovely voice and moves well, but she never seems that sexually threatening and dangerous….it’s almost like your pretty 4th grade teacher decided to wear a shorter than normal skirt to the school picnic in an effort to be a bit daring. I know it’s hard to fill the shoes of Gwen Verdon, but this role does require some actual OOMPH to successfully carry it off. Ms Whitehead’s Lola simply isn’t very dangerous.

Hans Altwies as the Devil/Mr. Applegate garnered a lot of laughs but I kept waiting for him to let loose and schtick it up a bit more…maybe, I was spoiled by seeing the Jerry Lewis revival a hundred years ago, or the film with Ray Walston, but the performance is a bit dry for my taste. His big musical number, “Those Were The Good Ole Days” had a lotta heart, but I would have liked a bit more ham.

My favorite performance in the show: Carol Swarbrick as “Sister”, a neighbor and friend to the Boyd’s and a determined fan of baseball in general, and the hunky Joe Hardy in particular. It’s not a huge role, but Ms Swarbrick knows she’s in a lightweight, musical comedy and she isn’t afraid to let loose and play to the stalls. It’s a big, juicy performance and I left the 5th Avenue wishing that her gutsy spirit had infected the rest of the cast. In all her brief moments in the show, you wish she’s stay around longer AND have a number to perform.

“Damn Yankees” is an entertaining show and an ideal treat for the family and the 5th Avenue has done a nice job of staging it but it never quite rises to the levels that it should. It has Heart, but it could use a bit more Zing.