‘Legally Blonde — The Musical’ brings kitschy fun of the film to the stage
It is a truth universally acknowledged that an adorable movie with someone as cute and charismatic as Reese Witherspoon must be in want of a musical version of said film. So it is not entirely surprising that Broadway delivered with “Legally Blonde—The Musical.” MTV even ran a filmed version of the musical in 2007. It was one of the first Broadway shows to air in total on television while still running on the stage.
And boy does this Theatre Under the Stars production have its loyal fans. It was impressive to see the sea of pinkclad ladies (and men!) showing their fullfledged fealty to the blond California girl Elle Woods, whose fondness for fashion and love are only rivaled by her intense interest in having fun. Suffice it to say that audiences will not be disappointed if they are looking for a lot of pink, faux fur, video-game inspired hearts floating on the set at key moments and a lot of
“OMG” moments. Even when things are sad in this show, it is still fun.
Elle (played by a vivacious and funny Hannah Bonnett) has to change her trajectory when her boyfriend, Warner Huntington III (a perfectly perfect James Oblak, who steals every scene with a great voice and expressions that are truly priceless) dumps her because she is not “serious” enough for him. After all, he is going to Harvard Law School. Hard to get more serious than that. So Elle, with the encouragement of some of her best college girlfriends, studies up and gets into Harvard, courtesy of high test scores and a catchy musical dance number. Who needs the traditional entrance essay? That is so 1990s.
Anyway, she goes there to get all serious and win Warner back. The tricky thing is that he has a new preppy girlfriend, Vivienne (Lea Sevola), and wow, now Elle has real problems. But the problem with the show is that Elle’s new Boston friend, hairdresser Paulette (a wonderful Ashley Morton), kind of upstages the main plot, with weird Irish songs and a love interest that is just as interesting as the Elle and Warner saga.
The sets and video design (Randel Wright and Jonathan Infante) are wonderful, whether a college campus, a staid law firm, a Pepto-Bismol infused bedroom, or, my favorite, a TikTok post from an accused murderess/fitness guru. Directed by Jeffrey B. Moss, the plot and performances are high-octane and campy, all dependent on bubble-gum pop songs that move the story along. But there are no stand-alone songs that are so arresting that you leave the theater hoping to get the soundtrack. This is Elle’s cotton candy world, with a plot that has a beginning, middle and end, and we are just living in it.
Yes, there is a lot of lesson-learning about work ethics, doing the right thing and realizing that a sorority sister can be just an important of a connection as anyone with an Ivy League degree. The fun of the show is watching Elle’s unorthodox legal strategies win the day in quasiclever ways. It is fun to follow, even if things are little predictable.
What wasn’t so predictable were the bizarre choreography choices (Bob Richard). With the exception of one fitness number using jump ropes that was an absolute marvel, the show seemed like high school cheerleader choreography, or worse, drunk college girls running in a ring or just jumping up and down. If you have dancing, it might be good to have really talented dancers. But there were no standouts in the dancing department, except for one of the guys who could also do gymnastics (Matthew Dean Hollis). As Elle might say, “Omigod.”
The other thing that was hard to comprehend was the costume design ( John Beltre). I have never been to a show with such universally ill-fitting outfits: everything was either too tight or awkward, whether it be a sports bra or a professional suit. The costumes didn’t even seem like they were from the 2000s. Maybe the ’80s or ’90s?
Nothing looked like California or Cambridge. Everything (except the fancy suit Elle buys fellow law student Emmett, a wonderful Woody White) looked super cheap, weird and uncomfortable. It was really distracting, and it was lucky that the show got more interesting after intermission, to shift our gaze to legal action in a trailer park and courtroom drama, because the costuming choices were just bizarre.
But Elle and her story are the thing, watching her defy the stereotype of the “dumb blonde” really is fun. As Elle might say, “You’ve got this.”