Electrifying performances breathe laughable life into the Baldwinsville Theatre Guild’s presentation of Mel Brooks’ punny parody of “Frankenstein,” the 1930s-era fright-film franchise.
Directed by the Heather Jensen and produced by Jay Burris, the monstrous musical “Young Frankenstein” showcases three of Central NY’s best performers, Henry Wilson, Leila Dean and Josh Taylor.
Wilson, fresh from his spectacular performance as Valjean in BTG’s “Les Miz,” stars as Fredrick, the Manhattanite grandson of monster-maker Victor Frankenstein. Insisting that his name is pronounced “Frahnk-in-STEEN,” he lectures on “The Brain,” while his medical students let their notebooks do the dancing care of choreographer Korrie Taylor.
Leila Dean, who ruled as Queenie in CNY Playhouse’s “The Wild Party,” appears here as Inga, Fredrick’s titillating Transylvanian lab assistant. Though her looks can’t be overlooked, Dean’s talents outweigh her formidable physical attributes. Like Wilson, she’s a professional musician who really knows how to sing! And her Carpathian accent cools her down with a hint of cuteness.
Skinny as a twisted rail draped in black, Josh Taylor’s wise-cracking Igor nearly steals the show at several turns. He greets Fredrick at the train depot with a celebratory “Together Again,” and then introduces the good doctor to eager Inga with “Roll in the Hay” in which Dean yodels like an alpine cowherder on aphrodisiacs.
Taylor, a BTG regular recently showcased as Buck Barrow in Covey Theatre’s “Bonnie & Clyde,” wisely uses his bulging eyes to punctuate Brooks’ comic dialogue, and Igor’s movable hunchback is always good for a laugh.
While they appreciate Taylor’s onstage antics, audiences should note that he also designed the set and directed the show’s technical effects which include a spark-hurling electrical lever. His laboratory set crackles and hums with Tesla coils on the table, gadget gewgaws on the back wall and steampunk gear-and-cog designs on the flats.
After lightning brings him to life, The Monster, played by a twitchy Derek Potacki, rises from its slab toward the end of Act 1. Makeup designer Jennifer Pearson complements his green skin with a big, bushy black wig and fascinating fishnet scars on his hands.
Several supporting cast members revel in the blend of horror and humor. BTG veteran Kathy Egloff excels as Frau Blucher (“Neigh! Neigh!”), especially on the ultimate torch song, “He Vas My Boyfriend.”
Molly Brown displays a glass-shattering singing voice as Fredrick’s intended. Though introduced by a comic ditty, “Please Don’t Touch Me,” she returns in Act 2 to sing a lusty “Deep Love.” Hair designer Jodi Wilson outdid herself with Brown’s bright-red “Bride of Frankenstein” beehive.
As one-armed Inspector Kemp, Gennaro Parlato leads the villagers in tunes such as “The Law” and “Transylvania Mania,” while William Edward White bumbles about as a blind Hermit begging, “Please Send Me Someone.”
From his piano bench, music director Dan Williams leads a supple 11-piece pit band buoyed by musicians such as violinist Erica Moser, trumpeter Clayton Morgan, trombonist Colleen Dailey and synthesizer player Andrew Kyle.
No matter what you’ve planned for this Halloween weekend, do yourself a favor and add “Young Frankenstein” to your schedule.
“The New Mel Brooks musical Young Frankenstein” continues at the First Presbyterian Education Center, 64 Oswego St., at 8 p.m. Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, Oct. 30, 31 and Nov. 1; and at 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 2. Tickets cost $25 at the door, $23in advance, and $20 for seniors at the Nov. 2 matinee only; 877-8465; baldwinsvilletheatreguild.org.
