Charming `Game Show' revival could use a trim
The fun and compelling romp is entertaining, but meanders too much
In the opening moments of San Jose Playhouse's revival of “Thanks for Playing! The Game Show Show,” we meet the gallant Frankie, a kindly and eager woman who prances around the stage preaching the gospel of game shows.
We are talking about the 1950s after all, when television was in its infancy and game shows delivered real-life melodramas attached to some hefty cash prizes. Those with hulking television consoles tuned in nightly to live vicariously through commoners whose lives were transformed in front of millions.
It's all so thrilling for Frankie, who is madly in love with shows of the quiz, deal, spin or bet variety. Frankie has surpassed queen for a day — she's shooting for an eternal monarchy. If there can be Rice-a-Roni thrown
in for good measure, even better.
There is much that is charming about the Playhouse's latest offering. However, the abundance of unfocused energy that lies within the play's laborious book, as well as a nearly three-hour run time that could be chopped down to something
more manageable, unleashes a set of issues that need to be tightened mightily.
Frankie (Shannon Guggenheim) is the ringmaster of this zany world of dinging bells and emcees who affirm everything with “That's right!” Told through Frankie's eyes, the story is greatly affected by the inspiring albeit poor choices of her fellow participants, notably the slimeball host Bill Todson (Stephen Guggenheim).
The issues the play faces have little to do with the individual performances. On the contrary, the cast of eight does quite well in performing many delightful ditties and handling splendiferous harmonies with gusto. Shannon Guggenheim, a terrific performer who also wrote the book and music while choreographing the show, carries appealing warmth and a grand sense of play to her interpretation of Frankie.
There are many aspects of clarity within Frankie's arc, a character who pushes the plot forward without delving into slack pacing. These include Ric Iverson as Fred “Tripp” McMurray, who devotes a memorable turn that is loaded with a boatload of good-natured goof. And Osher Fine continues her appealing development as a physical actor, doing lots of effective movement work within multiple characterizations.
The show's concept is quite compelling. There are moments for audience participation, which do not feel as plentiful as is possible and could give this piece more depth and engagement. Still, it's great fun to watch full-blown choreography unfolding beside an audience member named Jeff wearing open-toed sandals, trying to figure out what the heck was going on with these very odd game show people.
The bread and butter of the production comes from the many songs that are refined and inventive, with loads of schtick that keep things interesting, especially given Julie Engelbrecht's visually-delicious set that throws folks deep into nostalgia city. Many of the songs are ripped from the titles of the most popular television shows in history, a nice touch when examining the cultural impact of how game shows have contributed to Americana.
Where the show has its biggest struggles is in the highly uneven book. It is hard to discern what the script is attempting to do because it tends to float through various universes and styles, never sticking to one long enough to make an impact. There are some very compelling moments that introduce the quiz show scandals of the 1950s at the end of the first act, for example, but not much happens with such interesting information after that.
A show that hovers terribly close to the three-hour range needs to pop consistently, which doesn't happen nearly enough here. While the cast does its uniform best to keep pushing up the proverbial hill, trimming some of excess from the book may just give the show more necessary purpose, and the cast greater opportunities to play a much tighter narrative.
“Thanks for Playing!” does lots of good things, but it still feels like there's more to achieve. With continued attention to the finer details, big luck for a big spin on the wheel of fortune may be in this show's future.