Something Rotten at CPT

I love the musical Something Rotten!  Because I am a former high school English teacher and a self-professed theatre junkie I feel like this hilarious spoof of Shakespeare and musical theatre was written just for me! I was so excited when I saw that it was part of the 2023 season at CPT and I couldn't wait for my sisters to experience it (I may or may not have been hyping it up to them for months). Needless to say they now love it as much as I do after seeing a performance last night!  Nick and Nigel Bottom (J.R. Moore and Zach Watts, respectively) are playwrights in London during the Renaissance but, unfortunately, they have not been very successful. Their patron, Lord Clapham (Doug Caldwell), is withdrawing his support, Shylock (Doug Caldwell) wants his loan repaid, Nick's wife Bea (Annie Ferrin) is pregnant, and Nigel has fallen in love with Portia (Grace Liljenquist), the daughter of a Puritan (Dan Call) who wants to shut down the theaters for debauchery. To make matters worse, they are constantly overshadowed by the immensely popular William Shakespeare (Isaac Carillo). In desperation, Nick consults with the soothsayer Nostradamus (Scott W. Butler) to see what will be popular in the future. He suggests writing a play with singing and dancing in one of my favorite numbers in the show, "A Musical." When inspiration fails yet again, Nick asks Nostradamus to look into the future to see what Shakespeare's most popular play will be but, instead of Hamlet, he sees omelette (so close!).  As Nick tries to produce Omelette: The Musical, Shakespeare suffers from writer's block in another one of my favorite numbers, "Hard to Be the Bard," and tries to steal his own play back! Chaos ensues until Nigel teaches Nick an important lesson in "To Thine Own Self." This show is hysterically funny and I honestly don't think I stopped laughing from beginning to end! I had so much fun spotting all of the references to musical theatre (my favorite is RENT in "A Musical") and to Shakespeare's plays (my favorite is Richard III in "Will Power"). The entire cast is outstanding! My sisters really liked Butler because of his fully committed physical performance when predicting the future and I loved Carillo because he is so over the top and plays Shakespeare as if he was a rock star strutting across the stage while posing for his adoring fans (his facial expressions when he hears Nigel's play about a Danish prince had me laughing so hard I couldn't breathe). The ensemble is also incredible, especially with the high energy choreography in "A Musical" and "Make an Omelette." Speaking of which, it is absolutely brilliant because it mimics the instantly recognizable choreography of the musicals being parodied (I loved the homage to "Sisters" in White Christmas as well as all of the Fosse-style Jazz hands and the high-kicking chorus lines).  The elaborate set, featuring half-timbered thatched-roof buildings and a replica of the Globe Theatre, and the Renaissance costumes are a lot of fun (although I missed Shakespeare's giant cod piece from the Broadway touring production). This is an incredibly entertaining show that will have you laughing out loud and I highly recommend it!  It runs on the Barlow Main Stage through September 2 (go here for tickets). My sisters and I want to see it again!