Marriott’s ‘Joseph’ pairs sheer fun with glorious voices in Lincolnshire

“Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” is often considered one of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s most popular musicals, and when it first hit Broadway over 40 years ago, it received seven Tony Award nominations. That “Joseph” didn’t win any Tonys, but don’t be surprised if the Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire receives several Jefferson Award nominations for its latest production. It’s excellent.

The recipe for success in this case? Start with the musical’s fantastic lyrics by Tim Rice, stir in the wide variety of musical styles Webber used in this version of the Genesis story of Jacob’s son Joseph, and add a full ensemble of outstanding actors/singers under the direction and choreography expertise of Amber Mak. The result is nonstop fun by a cast that’s clearly enjoying this as much as the audience.

If you need a refresher on the biblical story laid out in the musical:

• Jacob has 12 sons, but Joseph gets special treatment (such as his father’s gift to him of the multicolored, aka “technicolor,” coat) because he reminds Jacob of Joseph’s mother. Joseph’s brothers are not pleased, especially when Joseph describes dreams that show his brothers paying homage to him (Rice’s lyrics in the song “Joseph’s Dreams” include “I dreamed I saw 11 stars, the sun the moon and sky, bowing down before my star”).

• The brothers – who tell Jacob that Joseph is dead – have sold Joseph into slavery to Ishmaelites, who subsequently take him to Egypt and sell him to Potiphar, a captain. Problems arise, though, when Potiphar’s wife is attracted to Joseph and her rejected proposition to him results in our hero being jailed.

• When word reaches Pharaoh that Joseph can interpret dreams, the prisoner is summoned. Joseph’s accurate predictions of seven years of bumper crops followed by seven years of famine majorly elevates his status in Egypt.

• When Joseph’s brothers fall on hard times, they come to Egypt to plead their case for assistance, not realizing the one they’re appealing to is their long-lost brother.

In the Marriott production, Mak has taken a different approach for the “Prologue,” with the father and mother of a little girl (Avelyn Lena Choi at the performance I saw, Lena Soszynski at others) telling the child a tune-filled bedtime story, the mother (Kaitlyn Davis) becoming the traditional Narrator, and the father (Devin DeSantis) taking on the title role. Both Davis and DeSantis are perfectly cast for these parts, their voices mastering all the clever Rice lyrics and the beautiful tones of Webber’s music.

Lorenzo Rush Jr. plays the powerful Pharaoh with a sense of style that breaks the fourth wall to the audience’s delight, even to the point of referencing the next show on Marriott’s 50th anniversary season schedule (“You ain’t gonna see this in ‘Titanic,’ are you!“). Rush’s Pharaoh isn’t just an Elvis or James Brown impersonation, but a standout highlight of Act II. At the end of the show, when there was a “megamix” of bits of over half a dozen “Joseph” songs, the audience eagerly awaited Rush’s return.

Kudos to George Keating for portraying both Jacob and Potiphar, making them memorable to the point that audiences may not realize he does double duty in the cast.

It’s been a while since I last saw a “Joseph” performance, but this production reminded me of the potpourri of song styles in the Rice/Webber score. I especially enjoyed: the country “hoedown” tune, “One More Angel in Heaven,” led by Joseph’s brother Reuben (Lillian Castillo); the pep rally excitement of “Go, Go, Go Joseph,” a very upbeat way to head into intermission; the beret-wearing French lament of “Those Canaan Days,” led by brothers Simeon (Leah Morrow) and Issachar (Christopher Kale Jones); and the calypso stylings of “Benjamin Calypso,” when Judah (Juwon Tyrel Perry) and nine other brothers plead for mercy for their wrongly-accused-of-theft sibling, Benjamin.

In summary, “Close Every Door,” a powerful solo performed by DeSantis that takes Joseph from the depths of despair to the heights of hope, may be one of the most well-known songs from the show. But take it from me: You shouldn’t close any doors that would keep you from seeing this Marriott production – it’s truly an amazing “Technicolor Dreamcoat.”

• Paul Lockwood is a communications consultant at Health Care Service Corporation in Chicago, as well as a local theater actor, singer, Grace Lutheran Church (Woodstock) and Toastmasters member, columnist and past president of TownSquare Players. He’s lived in Woodstock for over 24 years.

IF YOU GO

• WHAT: “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”

• WHERE: Marriott Theatre, 10 Marriott Drive, Lincolnshire

• WHEN: Wednesday through Sunday until March 30, with specially themed dining options

• INFORMATION: 847-634-0200, tickets.marriotttheatre.com, marriotttheatre.com