Playwright: Bill Russell ( book, lyrics ) and Henry Krieger ( music ). At: Porchlight Music Theatre at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave. Tickets: 1-773-327-5252; www.porchlightmusictheatre.org . Runs through: Oct. 15
It's always easier to write about a good production. This one is easy, with a top-notch cast, a vigorous and colorful physical production and a sizzling six-piece band ( Aaron Benham, music direction ) playing the beautifully-colored jazz-influenced score.
Side Show is challenging, however, due to its off-beat subject matter, conjoined twins and the freak-like atmosphere that clings to them even under the best of circumstances. It's a musical biography of conjoined twins Daisy and Violet Hilton ( 1908-1969 ), who did live for a time under the best of circumstances, earning good money as vaudeville stars, taking lovers and husbands and making a few movies. Each was a nearly-fully-formed individualthey didn't look freakishand they were vivacious and musically talented. Still, their fame passed and they died poor and obscure.
Porchlight offers the revised 2014 version of this 1997 Broadway show, which many critics and audiences found off-putting although it was a succes d'estime. Warming to the material remains difficult despite the fine score and the more clear delineation of characters in the revised version. The authors do not want Daisy and Violet to appear freakish or pitiable ( as many horribly mal-formed conjoined twins are ), and yet there is nothing particularly wonderful about them beyond their pluck and endurance. At their sides are two menone hinted at as being gaywho leave them professionally strong but emotionally drained. The tension comes in the contrasting personalities of the sisters: Daisy wants fame, celebrity and success while Violet wants normalcy, as they state in their first song, "Like Everyone Else." Early in the show, they are exploited by others, but soon they are full participants in their exploitation, and that's hardly fuzzy and warm.
No matter, this is a full-throttled and full-throated cast: Colleen Fee ( Daisy ) and Britt-Marie Sivertsen ( Violet ) brightly and quickly differentiate the sisters' different personalities. The attractive but deceitful ( in different ways ) men in their lives are Matthew Keefer ( as Terry Conner ) and Devin DeSantis ( as Buddy Foster ). In the pivotal supporting role of Jake, who loves Violet with a quiet, unrequited passion, Evan Tyrone Martin knocks it out of the park with his big baritone. The entire company of 18 brings energy and focus to the show.
Side Show is a designer's dream, with a backdrop of a carnival tent and vaudeville theaters, and with the sisters rising from poverty to glamor and wealth. The production team has a field day and brings the intimate Stage 773 theater alive with color and movement: Megan Truscott ( scenic ), Bill Morey ( costumes ), Greg Freeman ( lighting ), Robert Hornbostel ( sound ), Ross Hoppe ( projections ) and Andrew Waters ( choreographer ). Porchlight artistic director Michael Weberwho's really hit his stride in the last two yearsstaged the show.