Review: 'Miracle On 34th Street' Has Some Holiday Magic To It
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David Slone-dslone@timesuniononline.com
For the role of Kris Kringle, aka Santa Claus, in “Miracle on 34th Street – The Musical”, you couldn’t ask for anyone better than Robert J. Miller. Wagon Wheel Theatre regulars may remember Miller from his great performance as Edna Turnblad this past summer in “Hairspray”. He’s since let his hair grow out, but buried under that beard and bushy hair is still an actor who knows how to get into character. “Miracle on 34th Street” is the story of a man, Kris Kringle, who says he is the real Santa Claus, and ends up on trial in New York City for declaring that he is. Whether or not Kringle is Claus, that’s up to each person in the audience to decide for themselves. After taking the place of an intoxicated Santa in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, Kringle is employed as the store Santa at the downtown New York Macy’s. Kringle causes a stir because of his enthusiastic message about the true meaning of Christmas amidst modern consumerism. Doris Walker (Jennifer Dow), Macy’s special events coordinator, sees Kringle as an opportunity to promote Macy’s. Meanwhile, Doris’ young daughter Susan (Lauren Housel), who was told by her mother that Santa doesn’t exist, begins to form her own belief system after meeting Kringle and Captain Fred Gaily (Michael Mott), a bachelor in the neighborhood. Doris and Fred, polar opposites, fight their attraction to one another, and Fred ends up defending Kringle in court. It’s Fred’s first case ever anywhere. There are a number of musical dance numbers in “Miracle on 34th Street”, so much so that at the matinee showing Sunday it almost distracts from the actual storyline. I get that it is a musical – but everything has a limit. What I found to be the best part of the show wasn’t the dance numbers, but the acting and character development that managed to survive. I wanted to see more interaction between the characters and less toe tapping. For me, that would have worked better. There were several numbers that could stay and did bring a bit of magic to the musical. “Toy Ballet” was a fun number reminiscent of “The Nutcracker” Or “Babes in Toyland”. “That Man Over There is Santa Claus” performed by R.H. Macy (Michael Yocum) truly deserved its own standing ovation. Yocum excelled on the song. As stated, Doris and Fred don’t agree on much, but seem almost instantly attracted to one another. Dow and Mott have good chemistry on stage. When they are on stage, whether their characters are arguing or kissing, they bring a sense of romance to the show. If you liked Dow in her amazing performance this past summer in “Always, Patsy Cline”, then you’ll enjoy her lead performance in “Miracle”. I believe “Miracle” is Mott’s first performance at the Wagon Wheel, but after this show audiences will look forward to him coming back to Warsaw for future roles. As Susan, Housel can act older than her age, but when Susan begins to belief in Santa Claus, Housel lets out her inner child as well. It takes a certain skill to be 9 years old and able to play a range that Housel does. As Doris’ assistant Marvin Shellhammer, Greg Pragel delivers his comedic bits to perfection. Marvin faints – a lot – and Pragel hits it on cue. The original “Miracle” was a 1947 movie, and Pragel could have starred in the original as he has that sensibility about him – an old-time actor. Though not in a lot of scenes, Beau Hutchings stole what scenes he was in as the psychiatrist Mr. Sawyer. He was maniacal and loopy, and I found myself laughing at the character thanks to Hutchings’ hilarious performance. Visually, the set design by Michael Higgins and the late Roy Hine is minimal, but that allows for the many actors to be on the stage at one time. The costumes and wigs are very reflective of the time period, and work well with the show. Act II, for me at least, was more entertaining than Act I, but Act I does establish the characters, plot, etc. It’s definitely a family friendly show. My rating of “Miracle on 34th Street – The Musical” (out of four): 3.Wagon Wheel’s production of “Miracle on 34th Street” is on stage through Dec. 18. Adult tickets are $30 for all shows; tickets for students 13 through college are $16; and children 12 and under are $12. To order tickets or for more information, call the box office at 574-267-8041 or visit the website at wagonwheeltheatre.org
