By Jennifer Mustoe
Having grown up playing Mad Libs at every kid party and Girl Scout campout, I was interested in finding out how Mad Libs could be incorporated into a musical. Well, Mad Libs LIVE at Creekside Theatre Fest in Cedar Hills, Utah, gave us the hilarious answer. (Note: I am so tempted to make this whole review in the form of a Mad Libs game and put all kinds of blanks and parentheses, but I won’t.)
Directed by Jon Liddiard, Mad Libs LIVE tells the story of four teenagers who are hoping to win a singing contest but Merrily, played by Joleah Long, forgot to write all the lyrics. Before the show, audience members are given small note papers with Adjective, Noun, Verb, and Adverb on them. Tech crew Sariah Cisneros, Jennessa Ihrig, Zach Hanks, and Dallin Jeppson hand out the papers and then put them in colored buckets, one for each word type.
This is the theme of the show, using adjective and then noun, or adverb then verb all through the show. It is really funny. The audience was invested, especially the kiddos in our crowd, because we never knew what would be said. The beauty of the show is not only do these strange combinations make everyone laugh, but the four players, Long, Virtuosa (Annika Mikkelson), Go-Go (Jordan Bennian), and Geyser (Trevin Peck) ad lib and magnify the crazy terms that are being created on the fly. There’s one whole song Merrily sings to Geyser about finding new love as she tells her new beau that he is her “purple beach.” It is funnier in the moment.
Jordan Long, the producer of the Creekside Theatre Festival plays Ryan Seablank backstage, and his vibrant voice keeps the show going.
Choreography by Meg Flinders is very effective and the actors stay in sync as verbal pandemonium splashes the stage. Maren Hansen and Zach Hansen are the musicians (music is live–which I love) and sound design is by Jake Allen. Costumes by Jess Wallace keeps things simple so the Words are the Thing.
The setting for the Creekside Theatre Fest is one of the things I love most about this festival. It’s in a park on a hill. (Look for the signs at the entrance to the parking lot.) The stage is built and audience members bring chairs or blankets to sit on. Bring your dinner or snacks. At the show we attended, everyone from babies (we brought our 8-month-old baby Hazel) to grandparents. It is family friendly and lots of fun.
Also playing at the festival are Steel Magnolias, Romeo and Juliet, and Pride and Prejudice, written by Utah’s award-winning playwright Melissa Leilani Larson.
Come see Mad Libs LIVE–it’s short (just one hour), funny, family friendly, and different every performance!
Mad Libs LIVE, written by Robert Rothstein and Jeff Thomson.
4425 W Cedar Hills Dr, Cedar Hills, UT 84062
June 18-19, 25-26 2021 6:00 PM
Tickets: Adult $18, Senior/Student: $15, Children 11 and Under $12 Season Tickets Includes one ticket to all four shows Adult $60, Seniors/Students $48, Children 11 and Under: $40
Contact: creeksidetheatrefest@gmail.com, 801-899-5135
Creekside Theatre Fest Facebook Page
Mad Libs LIVE promotional video
0 Comments