It’s hard to go wrong with an evening devoted solely to Rodgers and Hammerstein, as eleven singers from the American Musical Theater Workshop proved in this splendid show at The Magic Castle. In just over an hour, the seven women and four men sang some thirty R&H songs to near-perfection — performing complete versions of some, just snippets of others. The ensemble work was impeccable, whether blending voices on “The Carousel Waltz” or providing harmony for one or another soloist.

The standout of the evening was Alli Mauzey, a compact “bundle of dynamite” who did three very different, very excellent solos: a funny “I Cain’t Say No” (Oklahoma!), complete with a convincing drawl; an outstanding “Something Wonderful” (The King and I); and a beautiful little gem about motherhood from Allegro called “I Know It Can Happen Again.” In the latter, Mauzey was joined late in the song by James Snyder singing the “my little girl” section of Carousel’s “Soliloquy” in counterpoint — a beautiful highlight. Snyder had his own outstanding solo moment on “Maria” (The Sound of Music), which took on new meaning sung tenderly by a man rather than a chorus of nuns.

In other strong performances: Alli McGinnis showed off a beautiful soprano on “A Lovely Night” and joined Cynthia Stults on “Stepsisters’ Lament,” both from Cinderella; Carolyn Schultz pondered over “Do I Love You …?,” also from Cinderella; Anthony Carillo gave an effective reading of “Love, Look Away” (Flower Drum Song), albeit with a bit of a pop sound near the end; and Gil Darnell and Reid Lee joined forces effectively on “All at Once You Love Her” from Pipe Dream. Darnell also did a moving solo on “This Nearly Was Mine” (South Pacific) though his Australian accent got a bit in the way of the clarity of some lyrics. Other solos included “A Wonderful Guy” (South Pacific) by Marikah Cunningham and “It Might As Well Be Spring” (State Fair) by Amy Lawrence.

There was also a powerful duet on “If I Loved You” (Carousel) by Lisaun Wittingham and Lee, followed by the pair singing The King and I’s “Shall We Dance?” and shifting into a spirited polka, despite very limited stage space.

As a group there were nice harmonies by the men on “Some Enchanted Evening” (South Pacific), by the women on “It’s a Grand Night for Singing” (State Fair) and by the ensemble on a flirty “Honey Bun” (South Pacific).

The cast was accompanied on piano by Edward Sayegh, co-founder of the American Musical Theater Workshop.

Elliot Zwiebach
Cabaret Scenes
May 20, 2010
www.cabaretscenes.org