Theater review: 'Memphis': full of music, life, noise Theater review: 'Memphis': full of music, life, noise (February 04, 2004)

By Bryan Wiggin

"Memphis" is one of those noisy, boisterous rock musicals that TheatreWorks always does well. With good, if not great, songs; dynamic performances; lots of color and action; and enough energy to light up a city, this one is a crowd-pleaser for sure.

With book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro, and music, additional lyrics, and vocal and dance arrangements by David Bryan, "Memphis" is based on the life of disc jockey Dewey Phillips, who played "race music" for his white listeners and thus was instrumental in bringing rock-and-roll to mainstream America. (Whether he should be thanked or cursed for this remains a matter of opinion.)

Named Huey Calhoun in this show, and given a loose-limbed, cocksure performance by Chad Kimball, this uppity white boy saunters into Delray's, an all-black club. His reception is frosty, but warms up considerably when he sings; the kid has soul.

Next he goes to Collin's Department Store, where he commandeers the background music system and starts spinning the platters he loves. He's about to be thrown out, but so many customers are buying the records that he's hired to keep on playing them. He then virtually breaks into a local radio station, takes over the microphone, and starts broadcasting his records. The station owner is furious, until phone calls flood in demanding more of Huey.

By Act II, Huey has his own television show, called Rock Shop. He's become a local cheese of considerable size, and there's talk that one of the networks will take his show to New York. But when the network representative comes to town to see his show, Huey announces on air that he's in love with Felicia, the sister of Delray, whose career Huey has advanced and who has been his sweetheart and who, unbeknownst to Huey, has already been chosen by a big record company for fame in the Big Apple. He then asks this black woman to marry him and kisses her on camera.

That does it. Not only is the network rep indignant, but Huey loses his show. (For New York, the network chooses someone from Philadelphia named Dick Clark.)

Huey declines through a succession of lesser jobs, and four years later he isn't working at all. When Delray returns from New York to close his club, he hosts one last shindig in Huey's honor, so we end with jubilant singing and dancing instead of sodden despair.

Everyone in the cast is terrific, starting with Chad Kimball, who does a lot of singing and does it powerfully. As Felicia, Montego Glover sings with great expression and feeling as well as vitality. J. Bernard Calloway, as Delray, and James Monroe Iglehart as Bobby, a janitor swept along in Felicia's success, also deliver singing that is vibrant and full of character. They all do good acting, too, as do Susan Mansur as Huey's mother and Bob Greene as the tormented station manager.

The ensemble players make a wonderful sound when they sing, and their dancing is exuberant.

Director Gabriel Barre moves things like the crack of a whip: The pace never flags, and everything is right in place. Plaudits go to the sets of Bill Stabile, the costumes of Pamela Scofield, and the lighting of Phil Monat. Conductor Galen Butler gets tight playing from his band. The sound of Cliff Caruthers is ... well ... loud.

"Memphis" is a real theatrical entertainment. It wins you over because it's happening right in front of you. So if you like a good show, go and let it happen.

INFORMATION

"Memphis," by Joe DiPietro and David Bryan, is being presented by TheatreWorks at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts through February 15. For information, call 903-6000 or go to theatreworks.org.

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