Don't Miss It!

Fiorella and Husband hustled Brother Bill and his wife and Friend Paula and her husband off to see the matinee performance of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Georgetown Palace last Sunday. Extra performances had been scheduled, which Fio assumed meant the show was a hit. But was it any good? When guests have driven in from Austin and Buda, one hopes the post-performance conversation does not center around what a loser the entertainment turned out to be.

Not to fear. The show was the best thing Fio's ever seen at the Palace, better even than Grease, with the fabulously sexy Kenickie that Fio and Friend Paula are still swooning over.

Except for an excerpt once on TV, Fio had never seen Dreamcoat before, although she knew it was based on the Biblical story of Joseph, he of the coat of many colors, who was sold into Egyptian slavery by his jealous brothers and, because of his Jungian skill at interpreting dreams, ended up as the Pharoah's head honcho, then gave his brothers a hard time when they sought succor in time of famine.

But Dreamcoat is a lot more than that. It's a fast-paced pastiche of musical take-offs, each one more shameless than the last, crowned with a performance by THE KING--over-tanned, shaven armpits, lacquered pompadour and all.

Every character was perfectly cast, for once. And the voices! The female narrator was absolutely fabulous, as was Joseph, and--well--everybody. Fio was especially struck by the gorgeous tenor of Joseph's father.

Kudos to director Mary Ellen Butler. Something was always going on somewhere, and nothing seemed pointless. Choreographer and lead dancer Jessica Kelpsch did herself proud.

And, oh--Fio forgot to mention the settings, props, and costumes, which were right on. She especially liked the prison bar shadows, the city lights, the corn girl outfits, and the dreamcoat itself.

Fio had a few qualms when the show first began--the Sunday School scene, as she interpreted it, seemed a bit fakey, but the second that was over and everything started moving, the action never stopped.

And blessing of all blessings, the actor's mikes were adjusted perfectly. For the first time ever, Fio understood every word, and didn't have to hold a finger over her good ear to protect what little hearing she has left.

Keep it up, guys! Guess we'll get season tickets again next year.