Review: ROCK OF AGES at Seacoast Repertory Theatre

The Seacoast Repertory Theatre has a knack for delivering energetic, crowd-pleasing productions, and their latest venture, “Rock of Ages”, is no exception. This musical, with its infectious 80s rock anthems and over-the-top characters, is a perfect fit for the theater's vibrant style.

The show is written by Chris D'Arienzo with arrangements and orchestration by Ethan Popp whose credits include a Grammy award nomination as music producer, Tony and Olivier award nominations as orchestrator, and is a Seacoast Repertory alum with ties to New Hampshire.

If you lived through the 80s and its special brand of music, then you will strike gold seeing this production. The heart of the show, of course, is the music. “Rock of Ages” boasts a killer soundtrack featuring iconic hits from bands like Journey, Bon Jovi, Poison and Twisted Sister. The Seacoast Rep's cast delivers these classic tunes with raw energy and impressive vocal prowess.

“Rock of Ages” is a jukebox musical set on the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles during the glam rock era of the 1980s. Like many a jukebox show, the plot is only a minor vehicle used to highlight a slew of musical hits.

The story revolves around a small-town girl, Sherrie (Sophie Mingis) and an aspiring rocker, Drew Boley (Jared LeMay).

Sherrie arrives in Hollywood with dreams of becoming an actor. She meets Drew, a busser at the popular rock club, The Bourbon Room, looking to become the next big rock star. They instantly connect, sharing a love for rock music and big dreams. Their relationship blossoms amidst the energetic and wild atmosphere of the Sunset Strip.

Meanwhile, The Bourbon Room, owned by Dennis Dupree (Jamie Bradley) and managed by Lonny (Christopher Hobson) an effervescent youngster, faces financial troubles. To save the club, they plan to book the legendary rock star, Stacee Jaxx (Sean Mullaney), for a final performance.

However, their plans are threatened by two German developers Hertz Klineman (Tobin Moss) and his son, Franz (a brilliantly played character by Spenser “Skip” Stewart) who want to demolish the Sunset Strip to build a shopping mall. This conflict creates challenges for everyone involved though Franz soon becomes ambivalent about his father’s ambitions.

There’s also a spirited activist, Regina (Michelle Faria) who plans demonstrations to stop the developers and their plans.

Mingis and LeMay, fresh off their leading roles in “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” at the Seacoast Rep are an entertainment powerhouse with perfect vocals and sparkling chemistry with each other.  Mingis excels in a sultry “Harden My Heart/Shadows of the Night” and LeMay is powerful in “I Wanna Rock High Enough.” Their duets, including "High Enough" and "Oh Sherrie/The Search is Over" are musical perfection.

Comedy runs rampant in the offbeat characters portrayed by Hobson, who is really the show’s narrator, and by Bradley, a fellow who owns a club where “everybody knows  your name.” Their showcase number, “Can’t Fight This Feeling,” is outrageously played for laughs, as it should be.  

Moss is a devious developer in the kind of character that an audience loves to hate. Stewart, as his son, is remarkable performing lots of physical comedy schtick. And you’ll be amazed with his outstanding vocals that take over in “Hit Me With Your Best Shot.”

Faria is at her usual best as the inspiring character who rocks the tune, “We’re Not Gonna to Take It.” In the years since its release, the song has become an anthem of rebellion, resonating with everyone from punks to politicians. It is among the most perfectly placed and executed numbers in the jukebox line up.

There are outstanding ensemble performances from the Rep “regulars” and newcomers include Sean Mullaney, Alexandra Mullaney, Michael Thompson, Sieglinda Fox, Dargan Cole, Hadley Withington, Heather Conti-Clark, Briar MacDonald and Finn Graff.

An unexpected performance took place at the matinee I attended with about ten women sitting in the front row dressed in their 80s best outfits. They were singing along with and talking to the actors, unabashedly.  What might have seemed inappropriate in any other production, was perfectly fine in this musical rock fest.

Show director, Alyssa Dumas, who is also the newly appointed artistic director for the Portsmouth based theater, keeps the action well-paced with wonderfully placed nuances among the characters. The action is fast and furious, a much-needed quality, especially with the jukebox genre.

I do think that the show tries to fit in a bit too many musical numbers. (That’s not the Rep’s fault.) There are about a half dozen that could easily be eliminated with no harm to the overall script.

Music Director, Andrew Strout gives the musical a rock concert feel that is stunning and the set design by Alyssa Dumas, Andrew Cameron and Kate Dugas is a testament to every local nightclub we remember from the 80s.

As for costume design by DW, I can only wonder how many thrift stores were visited to solicit the iconic looks for the decade known for puffed shoulders and power suits, flashy skirts and spandex leggings, and lots of velour and leg warmers.

The only annoyance I found with the production was the pre-show speech. Here, and at other theaters, I am not impressed with the decision to have an actor, in character, stand at center stage to welcome the audience, describe the emergency exits, give the turn off your phones requests, followed by thanks to the show sponsors. Breaking that fourth wall between the audience and the character really troubles me. It usually ends up being corny and not amusing, while diminishing the value of the information designed to be shared with the audience.

Do the pre-show speech straight and then invite the audience to enjoy the magic of theater. Please.  

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