‘Charlie’ at its best when dark and shocking
You know all those new brands of Snickers bars — Snickers Dark, Snickers Peanut Butter, Snickers Crisper, Snickers Xtreme? You think you know what you’re getting, but then it becomes unexpectedly crunchy, gooey or chewy?
The new musical of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory — The Musical” is like that.
The national touring version of the musical, at The Bushnell through Feb. 24, is at its best when it adds extra bursts of flavor to familiar bites. It struggles when it relies on the same old ingredients or when it substitutes artificial sweeteners or gratuitous sensations.
The show, which has had several distinct manifestations since premiering in London in 2013, has moments when it shocks, amazes and generates “oohs” and “ahs.” It also has whole scenes that make you feel like you’re chewing week-old gum.
The script by David Greig plays fast and loose with the Roald Dahl book on which it is based, hewing rather closer to the 1971 film version. But it doesn’t stray all that far, and its weird digressions help create some welcome surprises.
For example, even those who don’t know the story are secure in thinking that the fine young, impossibly poor yet preternaturally good-natured child Charlie will come upon one of the exceedingly rare golden tickets that will grant him entrance to a once-in-a-lifetime tour of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. In the book, he finds a dollar on the street and uses it to buy a chocolate bar that miraculously contains the ticket. This new stage version has the dollar turn up indoors rather than in the street, casually dropped by someone who may not be who he seems to be. Then, in an even grander bit of theatrical deception, the action moves quickly elsewhere. Charlie still gets the ticket, but in a way that adds some fun suspense.
The musical is full of unexpected, out-of-nowhere changes like that. This quintessentially British story is rendered in American accents. Charlie’s Grandpa Joe tells of his adventures with Lewis and Clark, Daniel Boone, General Custer and others, despite the play clearly being set in the present day, with references to social media, hacking and reality shows.
The TV-besotted golden-ticket-holder Mike Teavee (acrobatically embodied by the mopey-eyed Daniel Quadrino) is no longer just an avid viewer — he’s a gamer and hacker who lives his life online.
The gum-chewing diva Violet Beauregarde (Brynn Williams, who blows up divinely when “juiced” by an errant piece of candy) is a YouTube sensation with a hip-hop entourage.
Veruca Salt (Jessica Cohen, a trained ballet dancer whose musical credits include “Cats” and “An American in Paris”) is a snippy Russian prima donna who expresses her displeasure through kicks and pirouettes. Veruca’s demise in the factory is one of the show’s grandest and creepiest accomplishments.
For the entire week that the “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” tour is in Hartford, Willy Wonka is being played by Benjamin Howes, the designated understudy for the role. Howes steps up confidently. He is very comfortable in the Wonka costume, his interpretation of the character falling somewhere in between Gene Wilder in the 1971 movie and Frank Morgan as the Wizard of Oz.
Charlie Bucket is such a big part of the show— he’s in nearly every scene, sings half a dozen songs and has to play straight man to an assortment of loony adults — that three young actors alternate in the role on tour. On Tuesday night Charlie was played by Henry Boshart, who was seen on that same Bushnell stage as John in “Fun Home” in 2017). Boshart has fine comic timing and a singing voice that’s as sweet as the candy he’s singing about.
Having such appealing performers doesn’t mean that there needs to be back-to-back songs about how Willy Wonka makes candy, or two about how Charlie wants or deserves a golden ticket. There are a couple of cloying, saccharine numbers about love for family, when it might have been wiser to go the route of a better Dahl-based musical, “Matilda,” and write about the joys and fears of childhood instead.
“Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” doesn’t need to preach that families matter, or that candy tastes good. The show doesn’t hit its stride until the second act, when the kids (and their underwritten parents) finally enter the factory. This is a tale of greed, power, youthful rebellion and creepy authority figures who can’t be trusted. It’s best when it’s got bite.
CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY — THE MUSICAL runs through Feb. 24 at The Bushnell, 166 Capitol Ave., Hartford. Remaining performances are Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m.; Friday at 8 p.m.; Saturday at 2 and 8 p.m.; and Sunday at 1 and 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $23 to $123. 860-987-5900, bushnell.org.