Showboat’s ‘Biloxi Blues’ falls into place

David Burke | Posted: Tuesday, July 28, 2009 11:10 am |
Down to the cast and crew marching in step during scene changes, the Clinton Area Showboat Theatre delivers a solid production of Neil Simon’s “Biloxi Blues.”

Most audiences’ experience with the middle part of Simon’s semi-autobiographical trilogy is the 1988 movie of the same name, chronicling the playwright’s U.S. Army basic training days in Mississippi. Director Jalayne Riewerts turns a few of those preconceptions sideways, with mostly positive results.

Drew Simendinger’s Eugene Jerome is not played a la Matthew Broderick from the film, but more as a wide-eyed innocent in an Army buzzcut. He’s expressive, with a near-constant smile on his face.

The two women in Eugene’s life during basic training – Kate Hennies as prostitute Rowena and Claire Barnhart as girl-next-door Daisy – are very attractive and appealing, with the acting chops to match.

And Eugene’s fellow recruits also make the characters their own – Alex Fenzel as Wykowski, Dale Hawes as Carney, Nick Divarko as Selridge and Kris Doss as Hennesey. Joshua Sohn, who’s done no wrong this summer at Showboat, carries much of the work’s dramatic weight as beleaguered malcontent recruit Epstein, but he comes dangerously close to channeling former “Daily Show” personality Mo Rocca.

Rob Engelson plays far from the film’s Christopher Walken as drill sergeant Toomey, replacing the scare tactics-heavy disciplinarian with a harrumphing buffoon. Anyone who’s seen Engelson through the years knows he’s got great comedic timing, but he plays this part more for laughs than tension and drama.

Riewerts and her cast keep the production at a steady pace, with the aforementioned scene changes sometimes being used as segues, nicely gliding from one locale to the next.

Their collective comedic eye and ear serve the piece well.  It’s a comedic summertime piece that deserves attention.