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Never underestimate the power of a good musical. If the story and the music organically connect with the audience, you’ve got promise. Up the ante with wonderful acting and marvelous singing and you reach phenomenal. Rock of Ages, now playing at the Mercury Theatre, has all of that plus the wisdom of a clever director, Tommy Novak. The keenness of their insight aligns beautifully with Chris D’Arienzo’s deliciously subversive script; one that encourages all of us to take ownership of our lives and follow our dreams.
It’s that freedom to pursue your own destiny that helped propel the Mercury to resurrect this tribute to personal expression. Living in a world where suppression of the non-normative is becoming more and more widespread, it’s restorative for audiences to be reminded how critical self-determination is to personal well-being. Presenting a vehicle that focuses on those who not only dare to dream, but also have the bravery to pursue their aspirations is the perfect antidote to the cold cynicism pervading so much of the culture.
The dreamers in this earthy tale are found in 1980’s Los Angeles along the city’s storied Sunset Strip. Forty years ago, the stretch of pavement connecting Hollywood and Beverly Hills teemed with the music of glam and heavy metal. Bands hungry for exposure and thirsting for fame flocked to clubs lining the byway like miners heading to a gold rush. It’s in one of those haunts, the Bourbon Room, where we meet pieces of ourselves; or perhaps the people we once were. There’s a lot of big hair, plenty of denim, ample leather and a relaxing looseness that lets you know this is a permissive space that doesn’t put much stock in passing judgment. Dennis (Steve Watts) owns the place and Lonny (Michael Metcalf) helps him run it. Lonny’s also the play’s marvelously irreverent narrator who’s so ingratiatingly jaded you’re rendered eternally smitten by the brazenness of his authenticity. Talking directly to the audience as he let them know what’s about to go down in the storyline, teasing and playful blue tinged baiting perpetually seeped through his banter. Finely drawn and richly developed, Metcalf’s character helps to cement Rock of Ages in a very recognizable and comfortable reality. His immaculate timing and relentless dynamism added a breathless energy to the production. Other performances were just as notable. Aaron Davidson in his role as an obsequious son, and Donovan Hoffer playing a toxically overbearing rock star, both endow their characters with their own brand of magic. In each case, it’s sorcery fueled by farce.
A jukebox musical that resurrects a thick fistful of classic hits emblematic of the period, the vibrancy and swagger of the 80s shine through in songs like We Built This City, I Want to Know What Love Is and Hit Me With Your Best Shot. Opening with Slade’s Cum on Feel the Noize, the song’s compulsion to push back and reorder expectations would become the sonic theme of the play. It also embodied the timeless human need to want more from life. Both Sherrie (Kayla Marie Shipman), the country girl who moved to LA to be a movie star, and the Bourbon Room’s barback, Drew (David Moreland), who sees himself fronting a megawatt band; fall victim to that itch. Possessing much more conviction in her drive, Sherrie finds herself teaching Drew how to embrace his ambition. She’s also ahead of him when their interest in one another tilts toward romance. Youthful ineptitude and mutual misunderstandings threaten to derail the budding romance. Things spiral quickly when Sherrie’s crush on Stacee Jaxx, a rock superstar whose career was launched at the Bourbon Room, leads to a fateful tryst in the men’s room. It ends her job at the club and appears to sabotage whatever she might have had with Drew. Hoffer plays the part of an egotistical lady killer with such grand reptilian panache, he makes Scarface look like an innocent.
Meekly following orders barked to him from his demanding father, Donovan’s Franz exudes a completely different aura. Physically small and badgered into perpetual submission, he’s a voiceless minion whose dreams have long ago been locked away. He doesn’t agree with his father’s scheme to buy up the Strip and remake it into something bland and conventional. Watching him find his voice, with a little help from an unlikely friend, turns into an one of those highpoints whose impact isn’t diminished by its predictably.
Some dreams in this story come true. Often when they do, they don’t carry a strong resemblance to the ones that were originally imagined. Another reminder that when we chase our dreams, they can morph in unexpected ways. Witnessing how that happens in Rock of Ages reenforces the beauty of life’s randomness. Here, music becomes the substance that places the disparate nature of our dreams and hopes in high relief and gives them artistic expression.
Raised on a slightly recessed platform positioned centerstage, a five-piece band masterfully conjured the intensity and spirit of those rowdy days when Sunset Strip rocked. Fresh, dynamic and sharp, Laura Savage’s choreography glinted with the polish of Broadway. From the contagious spirit of the ensemble, to some of Bob Kuhn’s wild but wonderful costume designs, the components that make up Rock of Ages culminate in delight.
Rock of Ages
Through September 10, 2023
Mercury Theater
3745 N. Southport Avenue
Chicago, IL 60613
Wed – Friday 7:30pm
Sat – 2:30pm & 7:30pm
Sun – 2:30pm
