The final production of the season up at Northern Stage in White River Junction, Vermont, is The Full Monty.
It's a musical comedy adapted from the film of the same title.
NHPR theatre critic Kevin Gardner has this review.
First, let’s clear up a minor misunderstanding about this play’s title. “The Full Monty” does not explicitly refer to what you get when a bunch of men take off all their clothes. What this British colloquialism means is roughly equivalent to our expression “the whole nine yards”. It’s a general phrase for “going all the way”, and that’s exactly what Northern Stage’s irresistible new production of The Full Monty does. This, folks, is a terrific show.
It’s a musical, of course, adapted from the surprise movie hit of 1997 about six laid-off steelworkers who decide to scare up some desperately-needed cash by performing as male striptease dancers. The play transfers the movie’s location from Sheffield, England to Buffalo, NY, and beefs up its message of sexual tolerance, but otherwise reproduces the film’s cheerfully risqué absurdity and triumphant hopefulness.
Director Brooke Ciardelli did some of her best work on this production before rehearsals even started – it’s exceptionally well-cast, from top to bottom. Mitchell Jarvis leads the way as Jerry Lukowski, the frustrated instigator of the striptease scheme, with an enormously likeable performance that’s never affected, even in its most extreme moments. As his portly best friend Dave, Darryl Winslow provides literal belly-laughs all night long, but also genuine longing and even tenderness – he’s a gifted comedian who can act. And Troy Scarborough shines as Horse, the gang’s sole African-American. His hilarious introductory number, “Big Black Man”, would steal this show if the ensemble were not so strong.
But it is. And that goes for The Full Monty’s women, too, including the magnificent Charis Leos, who does some scene-stealing of her own as Georgie Bukatinsky, Dave’s wife. This is that rare production in which strong individual actors populate every role, yet also lift one another to greater heights when they work as a group.
Director Ciardelli should get a lot of the credit for beautifully integrating The Full Monty’s serious social commentary and knockabout comedy, and for its take-no-prisoners pace. She has a lot of top-notch help, though: Jamal McDonald’s choreography and Catherine Doherty’s musical staging are full of inventiveness and surprise, yet never ask The Full Monty’s actors to do more than they’re comfortable with; Music Director Jason Wetzel leads a tight five-piece band and Ken Goldstein’s set is a marvel: a post-industrial loading-dock wall of grey panels and stained corrugated steel that proves capable of disgorging everything from living rooms and lavatories to double beds and automobiles. Goldstein’s last trick – which I’d rather not reveal in detail – even explodes his own work; it’s a perfect symbol of the final destruction of barriers and hopelessness that have dogged The Full Monty’s resilient, working-class characters, and it comes at exactly the right time, as the motley striptease crew gives its unforgettable, one-night-only performance.
You might want to think twice about taking young children to see The Full Monty – there’s a considerable amount of boy-booty on display, and the script isn’t shy, either. But if you’ve ever been curious about why people love good musicals, or if you want to see a fine, fine cast working together about as well as it can be done, you should schedule a trip to White River Junction before May 18. The Full Monty is a show that goes all the way, in every way. For NHPR news, I’m Kevin Gardner.
