By Michael Buzzelli
Take four Hallmark rom-coms, squish them together, add some hummable tunes, a hippie aesthetic, and you have Shaina Taub and Laurie Woolery’s magical musical adaptation of William Shakespeare’s “As You Like It.”
Note: There are two productions of “As You Like It” running concurrently. This is the University of Pittsburgh’s musical production. This production is closer in tone to “Hamlet: the Musical!” in Dee Caruso and Gerald Gardner’s season 3 episode of “Gilligan’s Island,” a brilliant episode of one of the world’s stupidest sitcoms.
We begin with the melancholy Jacques (Shea Sweeney) is working on the famous “All the World’s a stage,” soliloquy, only this time the famous speech is set to music.
After a meet-cute at a wrestling match, Orlando (Kerragan Kurtz) falls head over head over heels, or rather hood over poulaines, for Rosalind (Olivia Tran-Speros).
But Oliver (John Papadimitrou) banishes his benign brother Orlando to the woods. Meanwhile, Duke Senior (Andy Levin) banishes Rosalind to the woods. She dresses up as a boy and takes off with Duke Senior’s daughter Celia (Virginia Keister) and Touchstone (Cade Teribery) the clown.
Being banished to the woods has never been more fun.
In the forest of Arden where we lay or merry scene, things get complicated quickly as love blossoms all over the freaking place!
There’s a love triangle between the disguised Rosalind/Ganymede with a shepherdess Phoebe (Stefania Di Michele) and Silvia (Marie Southall). Touchstone falls for Andy (Evan Knott). The previously banished Duke Frederick (Landon White) doesn’t recognize his daughter in boy drag. Rosalind in her disguise tries to test Orlando’s love for her/him.
Don’t worry. We’re assured of a happy ending early on.
The cast is exuberant, jubilant. It is delightful to see these men and women as they make their entrances and exits on the stage, players with woeful ballads and strange oaths.
Kurtz is tremendous. He has the swagger and the charisma to charm the fair Rosalind.
Tran-Speros is an excellent Rosalind.
Side note: Very little effort is made to disguise her as a boy. It’s evident that while very talented, she would not win a Drag King competition.
White’s banished Duke Frederick and Sweeney’s Jacques are particularly fun, especially when sparring together.
Other standouts include Teribery’s Touchstone, Southall’s lovestruck Silvia, and Keister’s Celia.
There is fantastic work by conductor Ben Brosche and his band, consisting of Victoria Murphy, Aldo Dilanni, Kamran Mian and Samuel Couch.
P.S. This reviewer cackled every single time Duke Senior and his cronies made their musical entrance. Think “Darth Vader’s Imperial March,” but with giggles.
Britton Mauk’s light and airy set matched with Maya Jones’s bohemian wardrobe plopped us right in the center of the Age of Aquarius.
In a world where Diversity, Equity and Inclusion have become political buzzwords, this musical adaptation of “As You Like It” is filled with queer joy.
The cast is having a ball, and you will too. If you’re in the mood for mindless fun, this production will be just as you like it.
-MB
“As You Like It” runs from April 4 to 13 at the Charity Randall Theatre, 4301 Forbes Avenue, next to the Cathedral of Learning, Pittsburgh, PA 15213. For tickets and additional information, click here.
