Due to the ongoing pandemic and my own personal situation after the loss of Sophie I was reluctant to rush back to live theatre and concerts anytime soon, and when I did I knew I would have to be careful and take it slowly.
Last season, although I sympathized with live theatre including the Shaw Festival as they struggled to cope with the realities of operating during the pandemic, I knew in my heart I was not emotionally ready to handle that next step in my recovery yet. Give it another year, I said. And so I did.
This season most of our major theatre and musical festivals are in full swing or are about to, and people are more than ready to return to what most would consider to be a more 'normal' routine again. But was I?
The only way to find out was to actually go and experience live theatre again and see how things went, so I did. My good friends at the Shaw Festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake were kind enough to invite me back to review some shows again this season for the first time since the pandemic began, and I was happy to take them up on the offer.
My first show of the season was the big musical at the Festival Theatre this season, the baseball-themed Damn Yankees by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. The book is by the great George Abbott along with Douglass Wallop, based on Wallop's novel "The Year the Yankees Lost the Pennant."
Now before I get to the show itself, a word about pandemic protocols. Most theatre companies, though not all, have relaxed their restrictions regarding vaccinations and mask wearing at this point in the season. In the case of the Shaw Festival there are not obvious restrictions in place, but I chose to go the cautious route and like the staff at the theatre, I was fully masked for the entire performance. The only time I removed it was while outside at a safe distance during intermission.
Am I overreacting? I don't think so. Look, I had people on either side of me, neither wearing masks, and I am not going to ask their vaccination status. So my only line of defence now along with being fully vaccinated along with two booster shots is to wear the mask. It is not onerous. It is not a big deal. I feel better for doing it.
Okay, enough of that, now on to the show.
Director Brian Hill has pulled together a superlative cast that works especially well in the ensemble pieces, creating the excitement one would expect from a baseball team on the road to glory. I found some of the production numbers a little bit long, but overall the show moves at a good pace even though you will be there for two hours and 45 minutes with one intermission.
Damn Yankees tells the story of the sad sack Washington Senators baseball team, watching the hated New York Yankees waltz their way to yet another pennant at the end of the season. But can they be stopped?
That was the thinking of middle-aged Joe Boyd, a die hard Senators fan who basically thought if there were some way to stop the inevitable from happening, you should at least try it. Enter Mike Nadajewski as Applegate, the devil in fancy dress who hears Boyd's wish and decides to make Joe an offer he just can't refuse.
You probably know the rest of the story. Paunchy Joe Boyd, played by Shane Carty, is magically transformed into hot-hitting new baseball phenom Joe Hardy, but of course there is a price to pay. He has to sell his soul to Applegate do achieve his dream to become a great ball player and that means leaving his loving wife Meg forever.
Sounds complicated but wait. Joe has remorse during his successful baseball run and wishes to go back to the loving arms of Meg, but Applegate has other ideas. He employs the services of lovely Lola to tempt Joe to stick with the plan and not return to his wife as Joe Boyd at the agreed-upon cutoff time.
The rest of the story you can figure out for yourself but suffice it to say it plays into the time period in which the musical was written, 1955, and the desire to live the great American Dream. Dated? Yeah, a little, but most people in the audience at the performance I attended were quite happy to check their reality at the door and just live the dream along with Joe and to hell with the pandemic, along with those Yankees.
The cast is uniformly good, even with a replacement in the key role of Joe Hardy. Drew Plummer was still in the role originally featuring James Daley, who has been out for awhile due to an injury. Plummer actually looks like a more fit and younger Joe Boyd than originally planned with the first casting, but by the time you get to the show later this season I would imagine James Daley would be back in his assigned role if he is not already.
Carty as Joe Boyd is solid; Patty Jamieson as his stalwart wife Meg is very good and consistent throughout. Kimberley Rampersad sizzles in the role of Lola, having great fun with her signature tune, "Whatever Lola Wants."
But this show belongs to Shaw bright light Mike Nadajewski as the nefarious and aptly-named Applegate. His inflections in his voice just drip of evil at times, and he makes the most of his big showstopper tune in the second act, "Those Were The Good Old Days". He also has a wardrobe many men - and perhaps women - would kill for!
So, as far as musicals go, does this carry the banner for the Shaw Festival's 60th Anniversary season? Well I think their 50th Anniversary season fared better with My Fair Lady but hey, given the trials and tribulations of the pandemic, I think it does quite nicely thank you very much.
Damn Yankees is darn good and rates a solid 3 out of 4 stars. And yes, it's great to be back.
The show continues at the Festival Theatre until October 9th. For tickets, call the Shaw box office or go to www.shawfest.com.
Have a great weekend!
July 23rd, 2022.
