Blood Brothers
Laura Coker in association with the Whitefire Theatre presents Willy Russell's musical about twin brothers separated at birth only to find each other's friendship years later. At age seven ("nearly eight"), they become "blood brothers," not knowing that they are indeed brothers by blood.
Director Bryan Rasmussen presents his audience with a tremendous success of storytelling with the calculated use of a gifted ensemble. It's not often that an ensemble cast works so well together. In this production, there is not a single performance that weakens Russell's invigorating tale.
Pamela Taylor sensationally executes the role of Mrs. Johnstone, the muddleheaded mother of twins, blackmailed to leave one of her newborns in the care of her wealthy and pretentiously fearful employer, Mrs. Lyons (Judy Norton).
Our eyes are glued to the stage as Ryan Nealy's triumphantly entertaining Eddie grows up through the years with the assistance of Nealy's grasp of the indefectible maturity of instinctual talent. He's a terrific singer, to boot.
Mueen Jahan is Eddie's father (or so he is led to believe). Jahan is the type of performer you just love to watch. He performs an on-target manipulation of multiple characters, allowing us to recognize his fun-filled enjoyment.
Additionally, Sita Young smashingly portrays Linda, the pinnacle of the love triangle which tragically ends this story.
Set Designer Victoria Profitt undoubtedly deserves a large percentage of the loud applause and cheer at curtain call for her well-thought-out plans and execution of the multifarious settings.
Willy Russell's delightful score is jam-packed with fun songs, such as "Bright New Day," "That Guy," and "Marilyn Monroe."
My only concern is that we're not exactly certain where the setting takes place. The British slang mixed with mostly American accents doesn't quite solidify the locale.
But all in all, this production is a beaut -- just like Marilyn Monroe.
On a grading scale: A