Beehive, the 60s Musical

Reviewed by Holly Bartges

Country Dinner Playhouse is all a Buzz! The Buzz rocks the rafters. Seven incredibly talented actors/singers/dancers under the direction of Rick Seeber take the stage when the house lights go down, and don’t give it back until it is time to go home.

From Left to Right: Mary Louise Lee, Sarah Rex, Tracy Warren, Lisa Payton, Lindsay Okasaki starÊin the Country Dinner Playhouse production of Beehive, the 60s Musical

One of the reasons Beehive, the 60s Musical, rocks is that Seeber knows this show perhaps like no other. His initial production began in Denver for a year-long run, followed by two national tours.

Another reason that sends this 60s musical through the roof is the doubling of the orchestra. Conductor Wendell Vaughn makes the keyboard stand up and talk, with Scott Smith on the guitar, Dean Tellefson, percussion, and Harry Grainger playing tenor sax. Great news would be this is a permanent addition.

The third reason Beehive rocks, and when push comes to shove, the most important, is the vibrant stunning awesome cast. In this case, starring is an understatement with Mary Louise Lee, Lindsay Okasaki, Lisa Payton, Sarah Rex, Tracy Warren, Mary McGroary, and Christine Paterson.

Covering the period from 1960-1969, Beehive celebrates the music that brought people to their feet with cheers and to its knees with awe.

What sets this production apart from other celebratory musicals is the cast not only sings the songs with heart and soul, they actually create the persona of the groups in costume, sound and looks. That eight actors could create the looks and sounds of The Angles, The Chiffons, Patty LaBelle and The Bluebells, The Shangri-Las, Leslie Gore, Brenda Lee, Connie Francis, Petula Clark, Tina Turner, and Aretha Franklin with believability in split second time with 50 costume and wig changes is enough to pop out the eyes and drop the chin several inches. The fabulous eight does all of this with energy that takes off on a jet-fueled flight never looking back.

Lee ties all of the songs together from the time Mary Louis is 14, wants to be a dancer, has been grounded, living with a mother who thinks she’s living with her head in the clouds on a fairytale dream. As the decade grows, Mary Louie grows up.

The Name Game song brings up the houselights to involve a couple of audience members. Other featured songs are “My Boyfriend’s Back,” “Will You Love me Tomorrow,” “It’s My Party,” “Where The Boys Are,” “The Beat Goes On,” and “Wishin’ and Hopin.”

Not all is frills and lace. The fun growing up games reflected in the pop music changed as did the society with Vietnam, the Civil Rights Movement, the assignations of JFK and Martin Luther King. Mary Louise brings this to light in the midst of her growing up years. She captures the changing of America with innocence lost with heart on the sleeve honesty.

Highlights are difficult to pinpoint since every song, every scene can be classified as a highlight. Standing out with amazing energy, power, and strength comes with the tribute to Tina Turner with “A Fool In Love,„ “River Deep, Mountain High,” and “Proud Mary.” And if that’s not enough there’s the homage paid to Aretha Franklin with “Respect,” “Natural Woman,” and “Do Right Woman.”

For those who were there, Beehive is a walk down Perspective Lane. For those who hadn’t arrived yet, it is a reflective walk into music history with some of the greatest artists of all time to not only hear their songs, but also catch a glimpse of their life and spirit. That doesn’t happen very often.

Tonya Phillips created the choreography that astonishingly mimics the touted artists. Joanna Kearns did her homework for the costumes, as did Diana Ben-Kiki for the wigs. Rob Westan sets the mood with his scenic design.

This production of Beehive is simply a marvel of artistic expertise.