Musical tries cheesy fun, but finishes up mediocre

By Chris Young
Daily Bruin Contributor

Nations have gone to war for some strange reasons, but George
Gershwin’s musical “Strike Up the Band” is the
first time that war has ever broken out over cheese.

“Strike Up the Band,” performed by the Reprise!
theater company, runs through Sunday at UCLA’s Freud
Playhouse. The musical, originally produced in 1927, takes a
humorous look at the American military, politicians, over-zealous
patriots and greedy businessmen.

This production of George S. Kaufman and George and Ira
Gershwin’s musical has its high points, but leaves something
to be desired.

Act One opens with the workers of the Horace J. Fletcher
American Cheese Company hard at work, producing America’s
finest quality cheese. The American cheese industry is protected by
tariff on foreign imports, a tariff that competing cheese producer
Switzerland doesn’t take lightly.

Through a series of provocations, Fletcher (Charles Nelson
Reilly), convinces Colonel Holmes (Steve Vinovich) that the U.S.
needs to go to war with the Swiss. He finances the entire war
himself, on the condition that it be called the Horace J. Fletcher
Memorial War.

Act Two finds the Americans in Switzerland, ready for battle
with the enemy. A couple of problems discourage the American
troops, however, including the loss of their uniform buttons and
their inability to find the battle, let alone the enemy.

The plot is further complicated by love and marriage on the home
front. Fletcher’s daughter Joan (Melissa Dye) wants to wed
reporter Jim Townsend (Michael Maguire), but her father orders her
to marry C. Edgar Sloane, the cheese company’s second in
command.

Meanwhile, Old Man Fletcher and Colonel Holmes both find wealthy
benefactor Mrs. Draper’s money very appealing, and a love
triangle ensues.

Mrs. Draper’s daughter Anne and cheese factory foreman
Timothy Harper fall in love, but their relationship is marred also.
Draper wants Harper to fight in the war so she can be a “war
bride,” but Harper refuses to go because he doesn’t
believe in the cause.

Even with some dancing Swiss girls and a Groucho Marx-type
character thrown in, the musical still lumbers along.

Charles Nelson Reilly gives an excellent performance as the
bumbling Horace J. Fletcher. Reilly’s Fletcher has both the
dignified air of an elderly gentleman and the urgent naivete of an
adolescent. Whether giving histrionic orations on the malicious
Swiss or trying to catch the eye of Mrs. Draper, Reilly is always a
convincing lead.

Maguire, meanwhile, breathes conviction into the square-jawed
reporter Townsend. Stuart Pankin appears convincing as the
sycophantic Sloane, a heavyset man with a couple of skeletons in
his closet.

A trio performance of “How About A Man” with
Fletcher, Holmes and Mrs. Draper sparkles with chemistry. Fletcher
and Holmes square off, each trying to outdo the other for Mrs.
Draper’s hand in marriage. They stand on either side of Mrs.
Draper, arguing over her head as they demonstrate why each would be
the better suitor. Their competitiveness is quite comical.

Another highlight of the show is the company’s tap-dancing
numbers. This is a welcome aspect of the production and brings
excitement to the musical when it starts to drag. For example, the
American soldiers stationed in Switzerland do a lively dance with a
huge U.S. flag and a giggling group of Swiss girls.

For all the strong performances, however, the musical is offset
by the poor onstage chemistry between both pairs of young couples.
The characters go through the motions of courtship but it is hardly
convincing.

In addition, the orchestra was a little sloppy during a couple
tunes, even in the opening overture. Occasionally the performers
and the orchestra were not synchronized, starting off at different
speeds only locking in together after a few moments.

Even more confusing is George Spelvin, the Groucho Marx-type
character who roller skates onto stage, honking a horn, at totally
random times. If Spelvin was intended as comic relief, the
character only succeeds in getting audience eyebrows to raise in
puzzlement. His entrances and exits are a bit awkward also.

Many of the musical’s jokes are hit-or-miss. Some of them
are downright cheesy. For instance, Townsend is labeled a spy from
Switzerland after he is spotted wearing a Swiss watch.
Tongue-in-cheek puns and double entendres are sprinkled throughout
the dialogue.

Overall, the show exhibits high and low points, averaging out to
a fairly mediocre musical. Musically inclined students might like
this production, but everyone else might well question whether this
particular show warrants its high ticket price.

THEATER: “Strike Up the Band” plays
at UCLA’s Freud Playhouse in Macgowan Hall Feb. 28 through
March 4. Wednesday through Friday at 8 p.m. Saturday at 2 p.m. and
8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are $55 at the UCLA Central
Ticket Office, (310) 825-2101, and Ticketmaster outlets, (213)
365-3500.