By Sandi Masori
SAN DIEGO — If you like corny humor, then Shucked is the perfect show for you! It’s the latest musical to hit the Broadway San Diego stage and while it’s got everything a Broadway musical needs to have, it’s real power is in its zingy one-liners- some of which you’ll get right away, and some of which might come to you later that night as you reminisce about the show.
For example, at one point one of the characters asks another if he was planning to put his Christmas tree up himself, to which he replied no, he thought he would put it up in the living room (buh-dum-dum). Don’t go anywhere folks, those jokes keep rolling in all night.
Corny humor aside, the story is your typical musical love story. Maizy (Danielle Wade) is engaged to Beau (played by understudy Kyle Sherman), and just as they’re about to be married, all of the corn starts dying. Maizy goes to the exotic land of Tampa in search of help to find out what’s killing the corn. She meets Gordy, a shifty podiatrist (Quinn Vanantwerp), and misunderstanding what kind of corns he works with, she brings him back home to diagnose the crop troubles. She also thinks she might be in love with him, or is she? Chaos and one-liners abound.
I especially loved comic relief Peanut (Mike Nappi) who whenever asked what he thinks will tell you just that, and it’s never about the subject at hand, and always a groaner, sometimes a creeper (the joke creeps up on you when you think about it later). For example; “I think if a movie is based on a true story, it’s probably true, just with uglier people” or “I think people in China must wonder what to call their good plates.” You never quite knew what would come out of his mouth but it was guaranteed for a laugh.
In all its 2 hours and 15 minutes of mostly good clean fun, though there are a few jokes that are slightly off-color.
The sets are simple, everything happens inside a barn, and neon letter signs let us know when we’re in Tampa. Otherwise simple set pieces like corn planters, barrels, and planks of wood are moved around the stage to set the scene to great effect.
I was especially impressed with the understudies who took on big roles the night I saw the show- Cecily Dionne Davis as Lulu, Kyle Sherman as Beau, and Sean Casey Flanagan as Tank. Except for the placard in front of the theater announcing the change in cast, you would never know that these were the understudies, they play the parts as if they were the original actors.
We learned in the chat back after the show that the understudies each have to learn two – three roles and be ready to go on for any of them. Davis only got the call that she would be appearing as Lulu at 1pm for a 7pm curtain. I’m in awe of the dedication and flexibility it must take to be ready to jump into multiple roles that way and commend their flawless performance.
As for a “Jewish angle,” we did get a bit of a shout-out in the opening song “Corn” where they suggest that
It’s a resource
that’s always renewable
Bring it to a bris
Or a wedding,
or a funeral
Hurry and get tickets, Shucked only plays at Broadway San Diego through August 17.
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Associate Editor Sandi Masori is a theater and food reviewer for San Diego Jewish World