Lyric’s “Hello Dolly” Continues a Tradition of Excellence and Style
The Cast of “Hello Dolly” with Dee Hoty gliding down the staircase in the iconic red dress by Jeffrey Meek. Photo courtesy of Lyric Theatre
Thornton Wilder wrote “The Merchant of Yonkers” in 1938, one of his few flops. In 1955 he revised and retitled it into “The Matchmaker,” and it was a hit. In 1964, Michael Stewart and Jerry Herman took the property and created the amazingly successful musical “Hello Dolly” starring Carol Channing and it was a smash hit! Stewart did the book and Herman wrote the music and lyrics, but Channing made it her own, earning a Tony. Thornton Wilder came to see the show and was captivated, coming every week thereafter. He fell in love with Dolly, and Carol Channing.
The tradition continues with Bette Midler, Bernadette Peters (currently on Broadway) and now, here at Lyric Theatre—Dee Hoty. They have all fallen in love with Dolly and the audience falls in love with them.
Some years ago Ashley Wells, Lyric’s Associate Artistic Director and Matthew Sipress, Lyric’s Company Manager had the distinct honor and pleasure of working with Miss Channing on Broadway in “Hello Dolly” and now they have the opportunity to recreate the magic here in Oklahoma. Wells is directing Lyric’s version and Sipress is lending his considerable talents as choreographer. Who else could they choose for the role of Dolly Levi but Miss Dee Hoty? She is a Broadway star in her own right, with all the elegance, grace and humor of Dolly.
Dee Hoty as Mrs. Dolly Levi in “Hello Dolly” Photo courtesy of Lyric Theatre
Hoty has a commanding stage presence; she is as stunning in performance as the memorable character created by Channing that has set the highest standard. Her voice is clear and her profile is slightly intimidating, but quite womanly. Clearly she is also enamored of every Dolly that came before her as we all are, but she makes the role her very own. She is vivacious, manipulative, canny and cunning and she is beloved by the Oklahoma audience.
“Hello Dolly” is the story of a widow in search of a husband of substance who can provide her with security and companionship—in short, Dolly Gallagher Levi is a gold-digger. But she is one with a heart of pure shiny gold and her sly and conniving ways are very endearing. She has been earning her living as a matchmaker attempting to match Horace Vandergelder with a suitable wife. Mr. Vandergelder is the distinguished and somewhat curmudgeonly half a millionaire that would make a very suitable husband for the perfect woman. He is the proprietor of a lucrative hay and feed store in Yonkers. The woman Dolly suggests is not the woman she intends for him to choose; that woman is none other than Dolly Levi herself! Little does Mr. Vandergelder know that he is about to be snared in the trap of true love by his matchmaker! George Dvorsky is the perfect gentleman to play opposite Hoty, his performance reveals an otherwise hidden streak of generosity with some finesse.
These two leading performers are supported by Kristy Cates as Irene Molloy, a lovely lady (also a widow) with a millinery shop filled with the frilly outlandish hats of that wonderful period just over a century ago. Women were elegant and Cates is nearly as elegant as Dolly herself. Mr. Vandergelder is looking forward to meeting Mrs. Molloy with Dolly as chaperone; however Dolly is not unwilling to suggest that Mrs. Molloy is not quite suitable. When he arrives at her shop he ultimately discovers that his assistant, Cornelius Hackl and another associate the very young Barnaby Tucker have played hooky from Yonkers and journeyed all the way to 14th Street in New York City to have some fun. Mr. Hackl is quite suitable as an escort for Mrs. Molloy; they are both immediately smitten. Mr. Hackl is ingeniously played by the notable performer, Matthew Alvin Brown. Brown not only has a voice, he has an inflection. He also has quite a range of expressions. He is an excellent dancer, but he can look marvelously awkward.
Out on the town in decadence and character are Kristy Cates with Matthew Alvin Brown and Virginia Newsome with Gordie Beingessner. Photo courtesy of Lyric Theatre.
His companion in the search for worldly pleasure is the young Mr. Tucker, portrayed by Gordie Beingessner, another performer of significant talent. He has been looking forward to seeing a stuffed whale at the museum but is disturbingly distracted by the undeniable charms of Mrs. Molloy’s assistant, the charming Minnie Fay. Minnie Fay is quite giggly, exceedingly innocent yet delightfully daring. Virginia Newsome is the perfect choice; just a little flighty, cute as a button and very excitable.
The two youngest of lovers are Mr. Vandergelder’s niece, Ermengarde, played by Megan Carpenter. She loves an artist, who is definitely not acceptable as a suitor by Mr. Vandergelder and she weeps copiously, noisily and rather artistically. Her young swain, Mr. Ambrose Kemper is played by Jackson Walker, and the two of them are delightful as they dancingly attempt to convince Vandergelder to accept their young love.
Wells directs her principles with skill and sensitivity, and gives substance to the entire cast. Under her direction the wit is subtle, the humor is broader, the pathos is slight and the reaction is ecstatic. Sipress is a well-defined choreographer; it can be seen in the grace of movement in each dancer. Also seen in the ensemble dancers particularly is the lack of movement—a dancer who can freeze in an elegant dance step and appear to be as still as a daguerreotype is an eminently skilled dancer with an inspired choreographer. Musical Director David Andrews Rogers leads the cast in song with strength and emotion. He conducts a profoundly talented orchestra with precise timing as well as musical joy. While the cast may have an occasional foible in spoken delivery, each song is delivered with certainty, sensitivity, tonal strength and purity as well as sophistication.
The considerable experience and expertise of Wells, Sipress and Rogers is enhanced by the beautiful set by designer Kimberly Powers. The scene painting is tight and expressive defining each location beautifully. Assisting Powers is Susan Crabtree. She is the author of “Scenic Art for the Theatre” the definitive work for all students of scene painting. Her work is amazing. The set is easy to work with and deceptively simple. Courtney Strong is Properties Designer, she lends realism and accuracy to the set, and the sound by Anthony Risi and lighting by Helena Kuukka is almost unnoticed. That means it is absolutely perfect in every way, natural and vibrant. Joanne Middleton Weaver of Elsen Associates does a magnificent job designing the hair and wigs, in a period when a woman’s hair was an extension of individualism, just as complicated as the hat that never quite covers the curls. All of this under the valuable guidance of Julie Meyer, a superior stage manager meeting all challenges with the grace of any dancer.
The “Hello Dolly” Cast celebrating their proposed evening of relative debauchery led by Cornelius Hackl (Matthew Alvin Brown. Photo Courtesy of Lyric Theatre.
Jeffrey Meek designs the costumes. Meek builds the costumes. Meek is exacting and simultaneously incredibly creative. His costumes are of the period, detailed and gorgeous in every way. There are 35 performers in “Hello Dolly” and they each have numerous costume changes. Each costume is original to the show, Meek has clearly worked his fingers to the bone and he has surely gone through several packages of Band-Aids in mounting this magnificent looking production of “Hello Dolly” for Lyric audiences. This is unending labor of love as he orchestrates Christine Draper, Taylor Radke and Alix Phelan in organization. He also directs Kathryn “Teka” England, Adrienne Coyle, Jamie Diamond, Callie Fay Nichols and Kerrick Dougherty in the smooth operations backstage dressing the actors and actresses carefully in these gorgeous costumes. But most of all he choreographs the dancing fingers of Susan Tetreault, Irma Arias, Emily Herrera, Rachel Barnett and Christi Coufal as they contemplate and create this magnificent stitchery-witchery that only Meek could imagine.
“Hello Dolly” is playing only through Sunday July 15, 2018. The curtain is at 8:00 pm both Friday and Saturday nights. There will also be a Saturday afternoon performance at 2:00 pm, with a final Sunday matinee performance also at 2:00 pm. Tuesday through Thursday the curtain goes up at 7:30 pm. The location is at the Oklahoma City Civic Center Music Hall at 201 N. Walker Avenue in the Thelma Gaylord Performing Arts Theatre. For additional information and tickets please contact Lyric at www.lyrictheatreokc.com or call 405-524-9312 Monday through Friday afternoon. The Civic Center Box Office can also arrange tickets and that number is 405-297-2264. Or contact online city tickets at 800-854-2196 seven days a week. “Hello Dolly” is the marvelous tale of womanhood and charm that no man or woman dares to miss!
The cast of dancing waiters in “Hello Dolly” Photo courtesy of Lyric Theatre.