Every corny joke (aka “Dad joke”) you’ve ever heard is likely packed into Shucked. The Broadway musical’s national tour stomps and hee-haws on the Connor Palace Stage through May 11. And yep, it does its dangest to be funny and risqué. Much of the time, it succeeds.
While the earliest real corn harvest in the Cleveland area won’t come in until (at best) early July, in Shucked’s small village it’s not coming in at all. No rain, no water, no crop. Alas.
Scenic designer’s Scott Pask main set gives the impression that we are in a giant barn. Light comes through slatted boards and most action takes place there.
When the musical opens, Storytellers #2 and #1 (Tyler Joseph Ellis and Maya Lagerstam), gently and humorously lead the whole ensemble in a corn cob chorus/dance number to celebrate corn and to lament drought has set in. Times are hard and help is needed.
To save their world, our leading lady with the corn-inspired name of “Maizy” (played by Danielle Wade), decides to stop her wedding to Beau (Jake Odmark) and travel to faraway Tampa to look for help. When Maizey’s best friend Lulu (played opening night by understudy Cecily Dionne Davis) offers her own anthem, “Independently Owned,” we know both will survive.
Our Maizy, sweet-voiced Wade, sings “Maybe Love” after bringing home Gordy (Quinn VanAntwerp), a big-city Tampa man who promises to “save” them. Trouble follows. But don’t fret — like any comedy anywhere, it ends happily, with a marriage (or two).
Opening night, the sound system seemed loud and raw (bring ear plugs just in case that’s still a factor) so it was hard to catch constant lyrical puns and jokes tossed our way via broad verbal humor and syncopated gestures.
Directed by Jack O’Brien (yep, Hairspray), with book by Robert Horn (yep again, Tootsie), score by CMA-award winners Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally, choreography by Sarah O’Gleby, the show is a polished presentation.
Credits also go to Japhy Weideman (lighting design), Jason Howland (music supervision, music direction, and orchestration), Nick Williams (conductor/keyboardist), John Shivers (sound design), and Mia Neal (wig design).
(Special appreciation goes to Tilly Grimes, a costume designer who knows duct tape can be used to repair ripped jeans.)
Bottom Line: Shucked flaunts a folksy, romantic and occasionally vulgar tribute to country grit. It’s kinda like what might arise if Hairspray (for bounce and quirkiness) and In the Heights (for community) created an exuberant offspring on a farm.
One Response to “THEATER REVIEW: “Shucked” @ Playhouse Square by Laura Kennelly”
Brandt Butze
Laura is pretty spot on. I caught it well into the run, so any sound issues were cleaned up. The voices were some of the best, all around, I’ve heard in this series. Shucked is silly and kind of cleverly stupid. The story is easy to follow. So what? Not everything needs to be Les Mis. As democracy, human decency, and respect for one another crumbles, I sat between four walls and laughed. The characters were relatable and the storytellers were magnificent. Would I see it again? I would likely pass, but there are many solid musicals I don’t need to see more than once.