It's Ladies' Night at "Menopause: The Musical"

◊◊◊ 1/2 out of five.

My friend, also a guy, attended Menopause: The Musical's opening last night at the M&T Pavilion at The France-Merrick Performing Arts Center with me.  We were instantly overwhelmed by the sheer ratio of women to men at the show – we weren't surprised (we expected it to be that way), but seeing it is much different than thinking about it.  Following the performance, he said, "Now I know how straight guys must feel at Naked Boys Singing!"  What an apt comparison!  Still, even for a guy, there was much to at least admire about the show, and I even learned a couple of things!

Chief among the show's strengths is the amazing cast of four women – each given names like "Soap Star," "Power Woman," "Earth Mother," and "Iowa Housewife."  Each actress is clearly working her ass off to please the adoring crowd.  And boy, does this crowd lap them up like cream!  Every move of the nifty choreography and the beautiful vocalizing got warm, knowing applause.  Their target audience, 40- and 50-something women, laughed, clapped and cheered like it was a feminist rally and good for them!  To that end the show is a major success.  And I will admit there were several sequences that thoroughly entertained me, clearly NOT the target audience, too.

From a theatre critic point-of-view, the book by Jeanie Linders is weak, cliché heavy and kind of obvious.  The same could be said for her concept and lyrics.  The plot is thus: four middle-aged women meet over the bra rack at Bloomingdale's in New York, and bond over their menopausal symptoms as they shop each floor.  The hook is that Linders has reworded 25 classic pop songs to fit the topic of the evening.  Hence, "Stayin' Alive" becomes "Stayin' Awake" and "Night Fever" becomes "Night Sweatin'."  You can see where this is going, most likely.  And there are a few times where the conceit works excellently, like the Sonny and Cher classic "I Got You Babe" sung to mothers who nag them about all of their inadequacies.  And the husband-leaving-the-bedroom lament sung to "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" is hilarious.  Yet, there as many others which really are a stretch and ultimately don't work as well: the tortured ballad version of "Puff, the Magic Dragon" about being exhausted due to lack of sleep, several numbers that cover the same territory, hot flashes (good once, eye-rolling the second time, not paying attention the third and forth time), and the final segment featuring various, um, tools for female self-gratification, set to, among other things, "Good Vibrations."  (Several people in my section actually left when that started…)  In short, the novelty wears thin within about 3 songs, and you kinda know how things will end long before the curtain call.  Still, as I said, the target audience LOVED each and every moment (save the last part) and so who am I to judge? 

Technically and musically, the show is slick.  The three man band (Mike Devito, Robert Jenkins and Frank Higgins) is terrific.  Most of the time they sound like a full band, not just three pieces, and the quality of the orchestrations matches perfectly with the action on the stage.  All though the main set never changes (large department store racks, tables and bathroom mirrors slide on and off – designed by Sue Hill) it is suitably stylish for Bloomingdale's and surprisingly versatile.  Designed by Bud Clark, it is also quite nice to look at, aided throughout by Jean-Yves Tessier's bright, cheerful lighting.  It should be noted that the M & T Pavilion, a former bank, now a banquet hall, has stories tall ceilings and nothing to really buffer the sound.  But it is never an issue with this show.  The sound, designed by Jonathan Bobo, is incredible, and every word can be heard clearly from all the way in the back. 

The choreography, a fun blend of girl-group stylings, disco dancing and even some Broadway, was done by Patty Bender and Daria Lynne Melendez, who have extensive experience with a wide variety of internationally famous dance companies.  Melendez has also choreographed several productions of this show, and instead of looking like a tired re-tread, her moves look sharp and are very character-driven.  They also seem tailored to the individual actresses, highlighting whatever skills they may have.  True, they will probably never be Fosse dancers, but they look sensational nonetheless.  Similarly, Michael Larsen's direction isn't high concept, but rather keeps thing moving for the entire 90 minutes of the show, and with a keen eye toward making these ladies look good. 

As I said before, the ladies in the show really make this worth the trip.  As the "Power Woman", Lisa Mack has a huge voice, a sassy delivery, and does a pretty wicked Tina Turner impression.  I will definitely never hear "What's Love Got to Do with It?" the same way again!  Jennifer Timberlake as the aging (and fighting it) "Soap Star" carries off the diva routine very well, and even if she looks younger than the script calls for her to be, she acts likes she's been there, just like the rest of the middle-aged girls.  And her version of "Heat Wave" was the best of all of them (it repeats).  Barbara Pinolini has the 60's flower power thing down pat, and even manages to do a decent job with the clunker of the night, "Puff, the Magic Dragon."  And she is quite funny as she pulls off the mini-work out she has won as a Bloomie's shopper.  For me, though, the real standout is actress Monica Lijewski as the "Iowa Housewife."  She has it all – she has a great voice, is a good dancer, and she is hysterically funny, particularly in a lengthy, wordless scene that has her trying on a skimpy black negligee over her "I Love NY" t-shirt and her ample frame.  Her timing is impeccable, and she alone makes the medley of songs devoted to sex-for-one palatable.  (Side question: do they really sell vibrators in Bloomingdale's?)  Anyway, all four actresses and director Larsen are to be commended for putting a fresh spin on clichéd writing, and for never once lapsing into overtly stereotypical behavior, even as they are playing types rather than actual women. 

I suppose that there aren't many taboo subjects left to bring to the stage.  We managed to get laughs out of Nazis with The Producers, a song and dance out of AIDS (Falsettos), and even some theatre of the genitalia (The Vagina Monolgues and Puppetry of the Penis).  I think it is a good thing – when we can all come together and discuss things openly, everyone benefits.  That said, even though I'm a guy, I probably won't line up for tickets to Erectile Dysfunction: The Musical.  Even if it lasts for four hours, it probably won't be as much fun as Menopause: The Musical is! 

PHOTOS: TOP to BOTTOM: The Cast of Menopause: The Musical; Lisa Mack; Jennifer Timberlake; Barbara Pinolini; Monica Lijewski.  Photos by Keith Weller.