Matilda at Murray Park Amphitheater

For the second time in less than a week I was in the audience for a musical adaptation of one of Roald Dahl's beloved children's books last night!  This time it was Matilda at the Murray Park Amphitheater.  When I saw the Broadway touring production of this show I didn't especially like it but, now that I have seen it a few times, it is starting to grow on me and I enjoyed this production very much!  Matilda Wormwood (Maevah Hiatt) is a precocious five year old with a penchant for reading, telling stories, and being just a little bit naughty.  She is ignored by her mother (Alina Mower), an amateur Latin ballroom dancer, and father (Adam Wilkins), an unscrupulous used car salesman, and is terrorized by Miss Agatha Trunchbull (Brinton Wilkins), the former Olympic champion in hammer throwing who is now the headmistress of her school.  With the help of a sympathetic teacher named Miss Honey (Hailee Christensen) and a story about an Escapologist (Mark Williams) and an Acrobat (Sylia Seitz), Matilda triumphs over the neglectful adults in her life!  One of the elements that I always enjoy in this show is the use of typography and I liked the innovative way that large alphabet blocks are used in multiple scenes, particularly in the number "School Song."  I was also impressed by how projections are used as an interactive chalk board.  My favorite song in this show is "When I Grow Up" and I loved the choreography involving all of the kids on swings (I always get a tear in my eye during this song because it is so poignant).  I also enjoyed the choreography in "The Smell of Rebellion" (the tumbling got a lot of applause) and "Revolting Children."  Other crowd favorites were "Loud," because Mrs. Wormwood and her dance partner Rudolpho (Eric Lash) are completely over the top, and "Chokey Chant," because there is a fun effect involving a child being thrown into the chokey.  Hiatt is absolutely adorable as Matilda and I enjoyed her renditions of "Naughty" and "Quiet."  Christensen has a lovely voice as Miss Honey and her scenes with Hiatt are so endearing.  All of the kids in the ensemble do a wonderful job but I especially liked Gwenyth Nielsen as Lavender and Zander Weir as Bruce because their antics are so much fun to watch.  Miss Trunchbull often steals the show and Wilkins was definitely the highlight of this production for me!  I laughed out loud during "The Hammer" and "The Smell of Rebellion" because of his facial expressions and gestures.  This show is a lot of fun and I thoroughly enjoyed myself because last night was perfect for an outdoor performance (it was cool but not too cold).  I highly recommend bringing the whole family to one of the two remaining productions (go here for tickets).