SA High School's Mame

Sorry for the delay in my review.  Normally I like to get these things up sooner.

So, I walked into the auditorium not knowing what to expect.  I knew practically nothing about the show except that it had the song "We Need a Little Christmas".  Not the plot, not any other songs, nothing.  I only knew that JG, AR, MP, and KB were in it.

I can't say that I was surprised for the better.  I am not a fan of Mame.  The plot glorifies a free lance lifestyle, makes fun of people who actually do work, and practically says that it's better to not get a real job than it is to work and be successful.  I do not like the message.

Also, there aren't really any good songs.  "We Need a Little Christmas" is the best song in that show, as annoying as it can get.  There are times when the songs are awkwardly placed in the plot, and none of the songs are that impressive even vocally.

As for the SA production, it was good, but not great.  The casting was not great, and it appeared that there could have been better shows for that cast to do.  Vocally, it was hard to tell whether or not the cast was supposed to sing in unison, or whether they had forgotten their harmony.

Now, if you've read my previous reviews, I always seem to criticize the choreography.  This is no different.  The dancers were not very together, and needed to rehearse more.  When the cast broke off into small groups, I noticed that the people I knew could dance were frequently paired up with people I knew had very little dance training whatsoever, and this clearly limited the options of the choreographer.  Also, the choreography itself was not very complex, and seemed to contain kick lines in every number.

The question I know you're going to ask is how does it compare to Anything Goes.  I'm going to say this:  Our show isn't better yet, but it could be, and most QV shows have been better than this.

-NM