He becomes her friend, supporter, protector and promoter. It’s about a down-on-her-luck 1930s English soprano (Allison Spratt Pearce) who takes shelter one rainy night in a gay/drag bar, and meets a cynical, flamboyant, middle-aged gay man (Lance Arthur Smith, less flamboyant and fey than he should be at the outset, though he “grows into” the role in the second act). And the LGBTQ Issues - not to mention the two central love stories - seem to be sidelined by the extreme amount of dancing and big chorus numbers. In the Moonlight Stage production, much of the humor and many of the laugh-lines don’t land. Additional lyrics were contributed by Wildhorn. Composer Henry Mancini, known for his soothing elevator-type music, died before the score was completed it was taken up by Frank Wildhorn, known for overblown scores like “Jekyll and Hyde.” Leslie Bricusse wrote some clever lyrics (especially for “Chicago, Illinois,” which is totally nailed by hilarious Bets Malone as a ditz-brained gangster moll). Maybe there were too many high-profile cooks for the stage version.
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“Victor/Victoria” has a long history: it began as a 1933 German film, “ Viktor und Viktoria,” and was made into a British-American musical movie in 1982, written and directed by Blake Edwards and featuring his wife, the incomparable Julie Andrews, who also starred in the 1995 Broadway musical theater adaptation. Photo by Ken JacquesĪll the ingredients are there: strong actor/singers, excellent dancers, gorgeous costumes, a 21-piece orchestra, timely issues of gender and sexual identity, and a Paris setting. Lance Arthur Smith and Allison Spratt Pearce star in “Victor/Victoria” at Moonlight Stage Productions.