Sleepy Hollow at West Valley Arts

Last night I saw the musical Sleepy Hollow at West Valley Arts and, on the whole, I enjoyed this retelling of the classic story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" by Washington Irving. In the isolated village of Sleepy Hollow the townspeople, including a wealthy farmer named Balthus Van Tassel (Bryan Johnson) and his daughter Katrina (Emma Roberts), Van Tassel's farmhand Zander DeGroot (James Duncan), the carpenter Abraham "Brom" Van Bron (Jordan LeBaron), siblings Faas and Rosalie Brinkerhoff (Joseph Branca and Morgan Fenner, respectively), the widow Gusta Tenbrook (Emily Duncan) and her children Dorine (Mersedez Clifford), Willem (Soren Ray), and Anika (Cora Duncan), the stable master Hans Van Ripper (Taylor Smith), his wife Arabella (Caroline Anderson), and children Dirk (Luke Elzey) and Mina (Sofia Paredes-Kenrick), and the town spinster Sabine Vedder (Lauren Slagowski), seem to be living under a supernatural curse. No one is allowed to leave and everyone has suffered unexplained personal tragedies, the worst of which is a bride whose groom was killed and now roams the village headless.  A pompous and arrogant schoolmaster named Ichabod Crane (Ricky Parkinson) comes to the village and is cruel to his students, is a rival to Brom for Katrina's affections, and is openly disdainful of the town's legends and superstitions which causes the townspeople to turn against him. He disappears after he is chased by Brom and then the Headless Horseman (Lio River). Soon after, the tragedies endured by the townspeople seem to be repeating but is it the curse or is it Ichabod Crane exacting revenge? I loved the story, especially how Ichabod Crane is recast as the villain, but it is very convoluted at times and I didn't find the songs to be particularly memorable because they feature so much exposition (my favorites are "Never Spare the Rod," "A Conundrum," "Your Heart with Mine," and "Vanished"). The stage is simple but effective and features paths leading to a bridge that retracts and set pieces for the village green, the schoolhouse (I loved the old-fashioned desks), the church, the Van Tassel estate, the stables, and the woods (I loved the large hollow tree) that are brought on and off stage through the wings. The period costumes are also very well done (the velvet cloaks are gorgeous). There are way too many scenes featuring the townspeople just sitting and standing around but I did really like the choreography for the dances at the Halloween party and the wedding and I loved the way the chase with the Headless Horseman and the final transformation are staged because these scenes are so dramatic. I also found the portrayal of the horses to be a lot of fun. Finally, the best part of this production is the talented cast! They all have beautiful voices (I was especially impressed with Roberts, Duncan, and LeBaron) and Parkinson had me laughing out loud with his characterization of such an unlikable prig. Despite my few criticisms, I think this a great show to see during the spooky month of October and recommend it as a fun night out. It runs at the West Valley Performing Arts Center through October 30 and tickets may be purchased here.