By Jennifer Mustoe and Craig Mustoe
Utah Shakespeare Festival’s theme for its 2018 summer season is Tolerance, and Big River is an excellent addition to the other fine productions offered to the lucky patrons attending. Executive Director Frank Mack led the pre-show discussion about Big River and the commentary, from him and those in the audience, was very helpful and insightful before we saw the show. First, USF decided as a team to keep the N word in the show. Though it is hard to hear, it is necessary, they felt (and we agree) that it carries the message of racism that was so prevalent in Mark Twain‘s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. And according to the several African American people at the pre-show discussion, it was necessary because to quote one older woman, “Things haven’t changed much since then.”
I read Huckleberry Finn a long time ago, but Craig taught it for years as a high school English teacher. Both of us felt like Big River takes most of the best of the novel (book by William Hauptman, music and lyrics by Roger Miller), though Huck Finn, often called the Great American Novel, has far more with its text than one two-hour musical can hold. (Craig didn’t like that the feud between the the Grangerfords versus the Shepherdsons (North vs South), which contains a great deal of symbolism is not mentioned at all in the musical.) However, Big River has plenty to recommend it and we thoroughly enjoyed it.
A scene from the Utah Shakespeare Festival’s 2018 production of Big River.
(Photo by Karl Hugh. Copyright Utah Shakespeare Festival 2018.)
Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn comes after the novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, and tells the tale of Huck Finn (Rob Riordin*), who narrates his own story. The book picks up where Tom Sawyer left off, when Tom (Michael Doherty*) and Huck have come into a huge amount of money. Huck lives with two widows who try to “sivilize” him, and the two friends get together with their other teenage boy friends and decide they want to be robbers, but before too long, Huck’s abusive alcoholic father Pap (John Ahlin*) captures him and takes him out of town. Pap sings one of the best songs in the show, “Guv’ment” in a hatefully, delightfully gruff way. And then he tries to kill Huck. Huck kills a hog and sprinkles the blood all over to convince Pap he’s dead. Tom shows up and the two young men sing a rousing “Hand for the Hog.” These two actors also appear in The Foreigner as Charlie (Doherty) and Ellard (Riordan) and the synergy between these two players is a living, breathing, beautiful thing. We insist that when you see one of these shows, you must see the other to see the ranges of these two fine actors.
Riordan shines as the happy-go-lucky Huck, but you see the turmoil in him, too. Soon Huck meets Jim (Ezekiel Andrew), a runaway slave, and the two head down the Mississippi River on a raft and we are blessed with the first of several duets between these two: “Muddy Water”. Their voices blend so well and the harmonies are incredible.
A scene from the Utah Shakespeare Festival’s 2018 production of Big River.
(Photo by Karl Hugh. Copyright Utah Shakespeare Festival 2018.)
Jim and Huck determine they will get the escaped slave to the North, but quickly realize the gravity of this as they see a boat filled with slaves being transported back to their masters (“The Crossing”). They sail only at night, and one foggy night they sing an absolutely gorgeous “River in the Rain” and miss the mouth of the Ohio River, which leads to the North. Soon they meet two con men, who call themselves the King (Chris Mixon*) and the Duke (Jim Poulos*). These scenes were the hardest for me because Huck is so naive and believes that true royalty are traveling with them on a raft(!) and really these two fiends just want to sell Jim back into slavery. Mixon and Poulos are fabulous as these two rotters, but it’s hard to say positive things about them because the characters they play are just so horrible. So that’s probably a very great compliment, isn’t it? I don’t want to say anything nice about them because they do such a great job of being creeps.
The King played by Chris Mixon and The Duke played by Jim Poulos in Utah Shakespeare Festival’s 2018 production of Big River. (Photo by Karl Hugh. Copyright Utah Shakespeare Festival 2018.)
In Act Two, we see Huck really grow and Riordan carries this transformation so well. He has to make big decisions, has to come to terms with his beliefs; how he feels about Jim, who has become a dear friend; what it means to become an adult. Tom Sawyer appears in Act Two, and he seems so immature compared to Huck by this time. I love how Big River shows that going through trials, as Huck and Jim have, and Tom has not, help us to grow, to become more compassionate, to learn to put others before ourselves. Tom cooks up a ridiculous “plot” to free the now incarcerated Jim, and it shows just how young Tom has remained. While Jim is in jail, he sings “Free at Last” and really, if you only see Andrew sing this one song, you’ll be grateful you came to see USF’s Big River. I saw a few people with tears in their eyes and wiping their faces. And I wiped away a few tears away of my own. Andrew is truly over the top amazing in this role, his dialect, his emotions as he begins to taste freedom and his despair when he is caught and sold. And the story of his family who were sold away from him? Andrew owns it and it breaks your heart.
Alice, played by Veronica Otim, sings “How Blest We Are” and also brings us to tears. Her powerful vocals, filled with pleading and grace, are another reason to see this show.
Director Melissa Rain Anderson has created a beautiful story, chapter by chapter, that is cohesive and valuable. It is with a light and loving hand that she gives us this, and it feels like a precious gift. Music Director Michael Gribbon leads his singers to amazing heights. This musical is a feast for its audience. Scenic Designer Jason Lajka creates a lovely world for us to fall into, and paired with William C. Kirkham‘s lighting design, we are transported to the Mississippi. Costume Designer K. L. Alberts gives us Huck’s homespun duds; Tom’s snappy suit; the lovely dresses of the women–townsfolk, the tarts, the old ladies; and the slaves’ clothing, tattered and as worn as they are. Sound Designer Barry G. Funderburg gives all that we need to believe we’re in the South at night, Voice and Text Coach Nathan C. Crocker gives us Southern drawls of all kinds, and Fight Director Jason Spelbring keeps us on the edge of our seats for the best of reasons.
Michael Doherty (left) as Tom Sawyer, Rob Riordan as Huckleberry Finn, and Ezekiel Andrew as Jim
in the Utah Shakespeare Festival’s 2018 production of Big River.
(Photo by Karl Hugh. Copyright Utah Shakespeare Festival 2018.)
We attended a preview production of Big River and many of the audience had come from Las Vegas and were elderly. They went bananas at the end of the show, screaming and clapping like kids at a rock concert. However, there were plenty of kiddos in the audience, too, and they clapped and screamed, too. And so did we. Big River is a big, powerful show with a big, powerful message. Do we see this show and walk out and think, sure is great that things are so much better now? I hope not, because in many ways, they aren’t. Big River teaches us that things can go well, but also that the innocent aren’t always spared. We learn that we can be grateful, can hope for the best, but in the end, we must stand for truth and what is right.
On a very personal note, one of the take aways I had was watching Riordan and Doherty slap each other on the back after the bows. Their camaraderie hit me very hard. I remembered what it was like to work so hard on a play with people you grow to love like family and that is what sings the loudest in this and the other shows I reviewed at Utah Shakespeare Festival. All involved in the productions are top notch performers, but as they create their characters, their dedication to the work, and to the people involved, is obvious. Frankly, it inspired me to start auditioning again. (Wish me luck!)
*Actors Equity players
Utah Shakespeare Festival presents Big River, based on The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, book by William Hauptman, music and lyrics by Roger Miller
Randall L. Jones Theatre, 300 W Center St., Cedar City, Utah 84720
June 29 – October 13, 2018, Times and dates vary
Tickets: $36-75
Contact: 435-586-7878 or 1-800-PLAYTIX (752-9849)
Utah Shakespeare Facebook Page
Is the music available for this musical. Just saw it and enjoyed it very much.
I’m not sure if you mean sheet music, but I do know we listened to the music from the show on Apple Music. It’s great!
~FRRU