Just in time for the World Series, Bucks County Playhouse stages this sports musical based on the ‘Faust’ legend.
By: Stuart Duncan
Just in time for the World Series comes Damn Yankees to Bucks County Playhouse. It’s been a terrific season at the old theater on the banks of the Delaware River in New Hope, Pa., and this staging can rival the best. It features strong acting and singing, some of the most talented and energetic young performers on the East Coast, and director/choreographer Stephen Casey at the helm.
Damn Yankees broke a long string of "sports musicals" failures and encouraged producers to try a few more, all of which were failures. You remember the story: Joe Boyd, a plumpish, middle-aged, staunch fan of his hometown baseball club, the Washington Senators, watches his team lose game after game and yells that he would sell his soul if the Senators could win a pennant. Almost immediately the Devil appears, posing as affable Mr. Applegate, clearly ready to seal the bargain. Boyd, a real estate executive, insists on an escape clause and one is granted. Applegate has, among his underlings, a curvy, sensuous siren named Lola, whom he is certain will entice any man to forget his wife.
Notice that the story is a musical comedy version of the "Faust" legend. Even Lola, who once was called "the ugliest girl in Providence, R.I.," is a female version of the legend.
The Bucks County revival has so many assets, you won’t have time to spot the holes in the story. Jim Lynch plays Applegate with a delicious blend of business executive and mischievous elf. By the time he gets to his second-act show-stopper, "Those Were the Good Old Days," he has the audience completely at his feet. Jenny Lee Stern, as Lola, is a sex-pot without the smut sometimes suggested. In the original Broadway production, the Devil turns her into an old hag for her sympathetic treatment of her victim. Here, director Casey leaves that section out and audiences like it much better.
Ryan Stone is most believable in the impossible role of the young Joe Hardy (Boyd, years earlier). Victoria Bundonis as Meg Boyd and Sam Marder as Joe Boyd actually bring tears to the eyes in the final moments. Jessica Bradish is a fine, sassy Gloria Thorpe, the sports writer assigned to the Senators’ locker room. And Ryan Cook turns in another believable character study as the team manager. The male ensemble, cast as Senator ballplayers, handles Casey’s adaptations of Fosse’s dance numbers beautifully.
If you are having trouble plowing through the political season and the accompanying shows (Of Thee I Sing comes to mind), Damn Yankees may be just the respite needed. Incidentally, when the 1995 Broadway revival was in rehearsal, George Abbott showed up to add a few additions to the book and stayed to help direct the effort. Nothing particularly exceptional about that, as creators often revisit their original material, but in this case, Abbott was 107 years old.
Damn Yankees continues at Bucks County Playhouse, 70 S. Main St., New Hope, Pa., through Oct. 24. Performances: Wed.-Thurs. 2, 8 p.m.; Fri. 8 p.m.; Sat. 4, 8 p.m.; Sun. 2 p.m. Tickets cost $22-$24. For information, call (215) 862-2046. On the Web: www.buckscountyplayhouse.com