Forever Plaid

Reviewed by Holly Bartges

A highly popular show, Forever Plaid, to be successful needs extraordinary harmony, a heightened sense of timing, strong chemistry, comedic understanding, developed personalities, for the fast-paced musical to ring true. Under the defining concepts of Director Nicholas Sugar, Boulder’s Dinner Theatre production of Forever Plaid contains all of the ingredients, and then some.

Written by Stuart Ross, Forever Plaid remains one of the most favorite musicals to ever be staged, because of its content, because of its illusions, because of the music, because of the antics and gymnastics, both verbal and physical. With a piano, a bass, four microphones, a suitcase, a variety of sundry props and four guys who prattle through clumsy awkward moments in high style and some of the ’50s most memorable songs, Forever Plaid reaches for the stars, then hands them to their audience as a gift.

Yes, Boulder’s Dinner Theatre.

BDT just closed with an outstanding run of The Wizard of Oz, and opens October 21 with The King and I. As if that isn’t enough, Michael J. Duran, BDT’s Artistic Director, decided to try on a new hat with a Cabaret series. Prior to the opening of The King and I, Forever Plaid runs during its regular dinner theatre time slot. After and during the run of The King and I, Plaid will run on Monday nights with a limited menu for $25.00. Already tickets are hard to come by, as well they should for this much beloved musical featuring songs of the ’50s with a group of four different personalities, who might have made it, could have made it, but never had a chance.

On their way to their first big-time performance at the Airport Hilton cocktail bar, The Fusill Lounge in their cherry red 1954 Mercury convertible, they were hit broadside by a school bus of Catholic teens from Harrisburg. The teens escaped uninjured, the Plaids, however were killed instantly.

Miracles do happen, and out of a cloud of smoke, they are given a second chance to perform the show that couldn’t happen in real life.

Fraught with anxiety, Jinx, Smudge, Sparky, and Frankie toy with, hesitate, tremble, and quiver over whether they can even remember the show, and after all it has been 41 years.

Scott Severtson gives Frankie life including his asthma attacks, as he stumbles in introducing BDT’s favorite musical director on the piano, Neale Dunfee as Neal Dumpy. He excuses his slip of the tongue by adding, “We don’t know the guy. He just came with the room.” It is an especially good laugh for those who had admired Dunfee’s work for a long time, and especially delightful to have Dunfee on stage in full view giving the piano a good workout.

Jinx, played with a lost sense of innocence by Lanny Boyer, who not only struggles to control Jinx’s nosebleeds, but stammers unsuccessfully at first to enunciate the word love.

Milk of Magnesia is a vital prop for Brandon Dill’s chiseled persona of Sparky, Jinx’s kid brother.

And then there’s Smudge with the oversized black-rimmed glasses, played with the appropriate nervous anticipation by Brian Jackson.

Along with their antics of uncertainty, anxiety, and nerdsville approach to if they can, what if they can’t, meet the expectations of a second chance. These guys can sing whether it be as a solo or as a highly talented harmonious group. When they belt out the songs, chills run up and down the spine keeping time to the music.

With the words written on his hand, Sparky launches into “Profidia” as though it has never before been sung. With cotton in his nose, Jinx flexes his worrisome nerves. He doesn’t know the words. He doesn’t know where he is or what he is doing then attacks Cry with a vengeance.

Their tribute to Perry Como with “Sing To Me Mr. C” runs the gambit of warm, touching humor mixed with digestible story telling.

With the blink of lights, palm trees sprout from pots, the boys don straw hats taking themselves for a calypso ride from “Day-O,” to “Kingston Market,” and “Matilda.”

An unsung hero for this production is Christina Underwood who makes the bass stand up and talk, all the while putting up with the Plaids antics with a somewhat straight face. She deserves a bow all of her own.

A favorite, always for Forever Plaid, is their three minute, 11 second tribute to The Ed Sullivan Show while with accordion in hand and black Spanish hat in tact, Jinx belts out “Lady of Spain.” In split second timing, the other three run through all of the variety tricks delivered on that show, from dogs jumping through hoops, ballet dancers, jugglers, opera singers, and tumblers to mention a few.

Thirty top songs from the 1950s are featured in this exhilarating, upbeat, warm, touching musical by four guys who give their heart and soul to the memory of several guy groups who reached for a star and missed, who had dreams bigger than their reality, who had a love for music but couldn’t find their way to let the world know, who had the talent but not the means.

When it comes time to leave, three hesitate until they are reminded that to reach one perfect chord is all anyone can ask. Smudge, Sparky, Jinx, and Frankie enter the theatre wearing costumes of insecurity, and go out as Plaids with “Love Is A Many Splendid Thing.”

This production of Forever Plaid is simply a fun night, an entertaining night, a heartfelt tribute to another time, embellished with a piano that sings, a bass that turns magic into chords, four guys with comedic timing who sing from the depth of their souls, then hand the audience a gift to be treasured. And it is.