By Amanda Berg Whittle
Glitz, glamor, glitter, and–nuns? You heard that right. Sister Act at Draper Amphitheater has them all. An up-and-coming disco star, Deloris Van Cartier (Kortney King-Lives), gets into some trouble with her boyfriend Curtis (Devin Spann) and ends up in witness protection at a Catholic convent. There, much to the disdain of Mother Superior (Emily Hawkes) and the joy of Monsignor O’Hara (Jarom Swanson), Deloris leads the choir of nuns to greatness through moving, grooving, and raising their voices to heaven with disco flare.
Draper Amphitheater is a large, clean, outdoor theater with some chairs and grassy terrace seating. If you prefer not to sit on the grass, blankets and lawn chairs are permitted, as well as outside food and drinks, and bug spray (which I would recommend.) The relaxed atmosphere is incredibly family friendly, especially if your kids do not like to sit in one place for extended periods of time. Despite being an outdoor theater, the actual stage is quite well equipped with fantastic lighting complete with a disco ball (Mackenzie Hobbs) and enough sound to fill the outdoor space without being overly loud (Laith Louza.) The costumes provide enough glitter and sparkle to fill the stage (Tina Barnes), especially when they twirl under the disco ball with help from the fun group dance numbers choreographed by Chloe Cox.
With an awesome facility comes awesome talent. King-Lives brings the spunk and sass necessary to recreate a character first played by Whoopie Goldberg, but she brings something more—a voice. I cannot choose only one song to showcase her talent, for it is present in all the pieces she is a part of, but she brings excitement and energy to every piece she is in. Opposite in personality but equal in talent is Hawkes, who is both Mother Superior and music director for the show. Not only does she have an amazing voice, but she leads the nuns to perfection in their music despite the music being quite difficult for singers. Her expertise in this manner is present especially during complex group numbers, “Sunday Morning Fever” and “Spread the Love Around.” One of the nuns, Sister Mary Robert (Jenni McKay), finds her voice through Deloris, and absolutely steals the show with her voice in “The Life I Never Led.” Eddie (Spencer Marsh), the awkward yet lovable police officer who helps Deloris, even gets a song of his own: “I Could Be That Guy.” Eddie is a kind, clumsy, and overall lovely character, whom Marsh displays perfectly. He may be in love with Deloris, but you fall in love with him just as easily.
It would be impossible to name all the wonderful ensemble actors, because this show is overflowing with fantastic characters who bring the show to life, including quite a few “comic relief” characters. For example, Curtis’ inept sidekicks, TJ, Joey, and Pablo (Joshua Morris, James Duncan, and RossTadalafil Softgel buying online viagra Capsule enhances the blood supply to the reproductive system of male. Blood levitra samples pressure and blood flow in man both play a major role in many conditions of low libido in younger men. They can bear everything – public dismay, loss of girlfriends, breakups, unsuccessful marriages, as well as others, but they also can take the help of herbal supplements to achieve better effect. best price tadalafil Best herbal remedies for premature ejaculation include carrots, almonds, pineapple, pomegranate, garlic, onion, beans, mushrooms, cereals, oats, eggs, walnuts, dark chocolates, bananas, avocados, asparagus, purchase levitra in canada blueberries, etc. Adamson, respectively), who sing the funniest song of the show, “Lady in the Long Black Dress,” a song during which these three awkward men in pastel suits try to sing about how to properly and successfully seduce nuns. They, along with Swanson, likewise sing the second-funniest song of the show: “When I Find My Baby,” which has a Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons vibe with just a touch of murder. Two other extra sassy nuns, Sister Mary Patrick and Sister Mary Lazarus (Courtney Byrom and Heidi Spann) bring additional life to every scene they are in, once by rapping. You read that correctly: rapping nuns. Despite having no lines, the altar boy, Zach Raddatz, is hilarious. I love musicals and plays that are so ensemble-oriented that every person on stage is a star, and this is one of those musicals. Wonderful director Bruce Craven helps accomplish this as well.
Sister Act is one of my favorite musicals. I first saw it seemingly by accident on Broadway when I was 15, and have loved it ever since. I was surprised to find out the composer of the music is Alan Menken, the same composer who wrote the music for Disney’s The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast. This just helped me realize how incredibly talented and versatile he is as a composer. Sister Act is not at all a Disney musical, however. There are some more adult themes and minor cursing, but nothing explicit and all would go right over a young child’s head. It also pokes fun at religion, but not at all in an antagonistic way that would bother someone religious. If you would like a family friendly evening with extra glitter, make your way to Draper Amphitheater and raise your voice with Sister Act.
Draper Arts Council Presents Sister Act, music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Glenn Slater, book by Cheri and Bill Steinkellner.
Draper City Amphitheater, 944 Vestry Rd, Draper, UT 84020
August 30,-31, September 2, 6-7, 2019 8:00 PM
Tickets: Adults $10; Children 2-12 $7; Children under 2 are Free
Draper Arts Council Facebook Page
Your review is so wonderful ! Thank you! One edit : Devin Spann sang “When I Find my Baby,” not Swanson. ❤️❤️❤️