“Gutenberg! The Musical!” Yes! It’s Funny!
The Milwaukee Rep opens its season with a goofy musical at the Stackner Cabaret.
A gut-bustingly hilarious musical about the medieval inventor of the printing press?
The speak directly to the audience, as if we were potential investors in a Broadway venture. They describe what we’re about to see: A production with 15 musical numbers and a cast of almost 20 characters. The only problem is that, without capital, the creative team and their pianist must cover all the parts. The set is sparse–a single piano and four movable boxes. They promise that, on Broadway, the staging will be much more grand, with a “dirty thatched roof” in every set.
Eric Damon Smith plays Bud, and Rep veteran Gerard Neugent is Doug. They move effortlessly from character to character, testing the range of their voices with the variety of musical numbers. Paul Helm is the pianist, and Laura Gordon directed.
Smith and Nugent bring so much energy and humor to the small stage that it’s infectious. I laughed every 30 seconds. And you might hate yourself for it, but you will leave the theater singing We Eat Dreams. Gutenberg! is so refreshing because it doesn’t take itself or Broadway seriously.
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