I recently attended Contra Costa Musical Theatre’s production of Tarzan. This licensed regional edition was staged in Walnut Creek, near San Francisco. The show is based on the Broadway version that had a brief run in New York with music and featured lyrics by Phil Collins and book by David Henry Hwang.
I never had the chance to see the Broadway show as it lasted just over a year, so I was eager to get a chance to see the show. I was not expecting much in terms of production value as it is a small venue, but I was surprised at the higher than anticipated production values as well as the stellar performers.
The choreography and dancing was impressive and the emotion, particularly from Maureen Duffey Frentz’s portrayal of Kala was Broadway caliber. I was also impressed with Riley Giadone who is remarkable as young Tarzan and whose role is much longer than I would have expected. Young Tarzan and Kala really made you understand the mother/son relationship that is key to making the whole story work.
James Royce Edwards performed as Tarzan as is actually reprising his role. He performed as Tarzan in the show’s regional premiere in Utah. This performance did provide some comforts that Utah did not, as that edition was performed outdoors. He definitely looks the part and performs some mild-acrobatics that sell’s his characterization.
The director, Jasen Jeffrey, spent months studying the movement of the gorilla species in an effort to bring what makes these creatures special to the stage. The performers playing the gorillas, including Tarzan, all had a similar movement that contrasted them from the human characters.
There were some challenges with the production. The vine swinging was more of vine-flying as they used a Peter Pan-style flying rig which resulted in a very unconvincing effect. Also, there was a lot of off-stage singing which was confusing and unimpressive.
With all that being said, it was great to see a group of talented performers put their heart into a Disney production. While the show may not have taken Broadway by storm, communities and schools will be producing this show for many years to come ensuring that Disney’s take on Edgar Rice Burrough’s classic will continue to live on the stage
CCMT’s production of Tarzan runs through November 10th. For more information visit www.ccmt.org