Theater Review: ‘Jekyll & Hyde’ at The Stage Door

Yes, “Jekyll & Hyde” is an excellent choice for the Halloween season.

If you’re going to put on a musical during the month of October it might as well be a monstrous musical about mayhem and murder — a dark and disastrous tale of dual identity. The Stage Door’s production of the show will continue through Oct. 21 at the Electric Theater in St. George.

“Jekyll & Hyde,” with book and lyrics by Leslie Bricusse and music by Frank Wildhorn, is not the family-friendly kind of musical you typically see staged in Southern Utah. It’s not a tame musical. There are prostitutes, sexual references and plenty of violence.

However, he real crime is the storyline, loosely based on Robert Louise Stevenson’s novella “Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.” Yes, at least the musical adds two major roles for women to the storyline (none of the major characters in the novella were women) but the roles remain shallow and defined only by their relationship to the leading man. One is an uninteresting fiancée while the other falls into the “virtuous prostitute” trope and together they create yet another annoying love triangle.

None of this, of course, is the fault of The Stage Door, director Varlo Davenport or the talented cast. They all do a fine job here with the material, knowing that the musical’s strength lies in its music. The storyline problems are just another example of an entertainment world (theater, film, television and even novels) where far too often women are relegated to love interests instead of becoming fully developed characters of their own that have some reason for existing beyond their relationships with the leading men.

Rant over. Now let’s get to what makes this a musical worth seeing.

First and foremost is the voice of Taylor Williams. In fact, it’s one of the best vocal performances you’re likely to hear on a Southern Utah stage — Tuacahn and the Utah Shakespeare Festival included. He’s that good.

Williams plays title role(s) as Dr. Henry Jekyll, the good doctor looking for a way to save his mentally ailing father, only to have his experiments transform him into the demonic Mr. Hyde. Williams adeptly tackles these transformations, changing his posture, expressions and voice as he switches back and forth. Those Hyde growls are especially fun.

Yet he’s at his best when singing as Jekyll. His voice is filled with all sorts of luxurious tones. All of his songs are solid but the musical’s big song, “This is the Moment,” is the standout. Williams is simply masterful.

His is not the only strong performance, though. Although their characters are poorly written, Brooke Bang and Kimber Dutton are both superb as Lucy and Emma, the prostitute and the fiancée, respectively. Bang’s voice is simply lovely on “Someone Like You,” proving that even though she is capable of vocal firepower, she can keep it under control. And Dutton’s voice is just gorgeous on “Once Upon a Dream” It’s even better when they sing together on the luminous “In His Eyes,” as long as you can ignore the love triangle.

Overall, the music of “Jekyll & Hyde” is a step up from your average stage musical. There’s an element of early ‘90s pop to ballads like “Take Me as I Am” and “A New Life” while many of the ensemble numbers (like “Façade”) are grounded in strong rhythms and filled with intensity (“in 10 cities,” as Wayne Campbell would say).

The other thing saving “Jekyll & Hyde” from its storyline is Davenport’s directing. He brings an overall ominous vibe to the production, aided in no small part by Josh Scott’s moody lighting design. While fog enhances the effect in one scene, it’s not even necessary. The darkness is inherent in Davenport’s vision.

Perhaps his directing genius is most evident in how the cast navigates a small stage with virtually no backstage area. This severely limits props and especially scenery, leaving a director with few options for illustrating scene changes and the challenge of working around what is there. A large, dynamically designed set pieces with a variety doors not only allows Davenport to bring more movement to the stage but also to use it for portraying various images.

Enhancing Davenport’s vision is prop designer Emili Whitney, whose small but intricate chemistry table prop is perfect for creating a believable laboratory for Dr. Jekyll. The attention to detail on this prop is truly spectacular and unexpected for a production of this size.

Even producer Kerry Kimball Perry contributes to the musical’s look with her professional costume design in conjunction with Tonya Christensen.

If you’re still confused about whether this is a negative review or a positive one, it’s the latter. The Stage Door’s production of “Jekyll & Hyde” is definitely worth seeing. After all, the singing is always one of the most important parts of any musical and this cast truly delivers.

We just need to be more aware of the roles being written for women, especially in light of the recent Hollywood controversies with Harvey Weinstein. When so many roles focus on women simply as love interests, it enforces the ideas that women in general are defined by their relationships to men — becoming not only love interests but sex objects.

Representation matters. Women and men need to see more women on stage and on the screen as fully developed people. The arts have a responsibility to enforce that.

So go see “Jekyll & Hyde.” Rejoice in the fantastic vocal performances. Groove on Davenport’s stylish vision. But don’t dismiss Emma as an uninteresting love interest, even though she’s written that way. Don’t dismiss Lucy as an overused Fantine trope, even though she’s written that way. Know that these women, like all women, have stories that go beyond how they are portrayed by the men who create and control much of the industry.

The Stage Door presents “Jekyll & Hyde” from Oct. 5-21 at the Electric Theater, 68 E. Tabernacle St., St. George. Tickets are $18-$21. Visit TheStageDoorTheater.com or call 435-656-4407.

  2 comments for “Theater Review: ‘Jekyll & Hyde’ at The Stage Door

  1. Leanne Worwood
    October 14, 2017 at 8:37 pm

    I love your review, Brian. Kimber and I have had many discussions about how poorly the women were written in this play, especially considering the rather slow beginning. I agree with everything you wrote, and it even opened my eyes to things I didn’t catch.

    • October 15, 2017 at 1:17 am

      Thank you for the kind words, Leanne. Kimber was wonderful in the play, though. Her vocals were quite beautiful and, according to my who has a better ear than me, technically sound.

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