“Chicago” is a musical that needs no introduction. The show’s 1996 revival will hit 30 years onstage this November and is the longest currently running Broadway show. And lest we forget the Academy Award-winning 2002 film adaptation. There’s no doubt such a successful show has earned its place in the musical theater pantheon.
It could get easy for such a storied production to get stale. But Tuesday’s opening night crowd for the tour of “Chicago,” which is part of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s PNC Broadway in Pittsburgh series, would hear nothing of that; they loved every number.
The tour runs through March 15 at the Benedum Center in Downtown Pittsburgh.
Believe it or not, “Chicago” has an even longer history. The musical was based on a 1926 play and premiered in 1975 with music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book by Ebb and Bob Fosse. The 1996 revival is a more spare production, which is evident in the still-used mostly unadorned set design for the tour (by set designer John Lee Beatty). The most important centerpiece of the stage is the live jazz band that plays the score — and they make an impressive centerpiece indeed.
“Chicago” takes place in the roaring 1920s in, well, Chicago, where we meet vaudeville performer Velma Kelly (Claire Marshall) and starlet hopeful Roxie Hart (Ellie Roddy), both of whom commit murder and end up in jail awaiting trial. The two act as fascinating foils for each other, especially when they both snag the services of superstar defense attorney Billy Flynn (Max Cervantes).
The story reveals the blurred line between performance and reality as refracted through the lens of media and public perception during this time in Chicago’s history. The original play was, in fact, written by a reporter named Maurine Dallas Watkins who covered similar trials in her work. The musical cleverly uses overdramatic acting, choreography and even fake “puppetry” to construct a trial that allows for the acquittal of a very guilty murderer.
Roddy’s Roxie is clever and oozes charisma, especially in celebratory number “Roxie.” She’s got effortless comedy chops and a lovely voice to back up Roxie’s big stage dreams. But she truly shines during the second act scene where she takes the stand at her own trial, giving a winkingly pathos-filled physical performance that had the audience in stitches on Tuesday night. Marshall swings from aloof to desperate, making the most of the somewhat underdeveloped Velma character. But her dance skills are breathtaking; she possesses a practiced fluidity that makes her totally believable as a vaudeville performer.
But the cast standout is Cervantes, whose smoothness, strong vocals and stage presence would get any jury to sway in his favor. He and Roddy team up for press conference song “We Both Reached for the Gun,” and together they slay.
Then there’s Marc Christopher as Amos Hart, Roxie’s hapless and good-natured husband who’s prepared to take the fall until he finds out she’s killed her lover. I’ve never gotten the hype about Amos’ sad-sack second act solo song “Mister Cellophane” but Christopher made it clear why the tune’s such a fan favorite.
Gregory Butler created the recreation of the original production’s choreography, and while some of the numbers aren’t as showy as you’d expect, the show just gets slinkier, more acrobatic and flashier as it goes on. Costume designer William Ivey Long has the ensemble and main characters mostly in monochromatic black, but the outfits are close-fitting and revealing enough to enhance each actor’s (often provocative) movements.
Music director Andy Chen and the onstage musicians seem to have a great time playing horn-heavy, piping-hot jazz songs that run the gamut from quick-stepping rags to understated ballads. During the opening number, “All That Jazz,” they played with the kind of exuberance you would expect in a club of the era.
David Hyslop re-created the New York production’s direction by Walter Bobbie, and the intricacies of every lighting cue, movement over the stage and placement of the ensemble felt seamless and clean, with excellent timing throughout. The whole thing comes together beautifully as both spare and spectacular, and it even gets better as she show nears its close — not an easy feat, as most musicals have weaker second acts.
It’s been nearly 30 years and yes, if you’ve seen it enough, you may be ready to send “Chicago” to musical theater jail. But this production has some razzle dazzle left in it yet.
“Chicago” will run at the Benedum Center in Downtown Pittsburgh through March 15 as part of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s PNC Broadway in Pittsburgh series. For tickets, visit trustarts.org.