NICE WORK!
CVRep is closing its 23/24 season this month with a bewitching production of Nice Work If You Can Get It running through April 28th. Like other “new” Gershwin musicals including Crazy For You (a reimagining of Girl Crazy) and My One and Only (derived from Funny Face), Nice Work is crafted from remnants of the 1926 musical Oh Kay! by Guy Bolton and P.G. Wodehouse. Joe DiPietro (known for Memphis) acknowledges their work as a source of inspiration but noted that he drew loosely from the earlier story. Nice Work evokes original ’20s styling, blending zany comedy, wacky characters, jazz/tap dance sequences, and occasional heartfelt ballads. Taking cues from Bolton and Wodehouse, DiPietro’s book is meager and absurd with lots of laughs amid the whimsy. There are gender role reversals and some delightful political jabs that seemed as if the book was revised for a 2024 audience! (It wasn’t.)
Jennifer Knox and Hayden Stanes
It’s unapologetically escapist fare: During 1927 Prohibition Billie Bendi (Jennifer Knox), a tough-as-nails bootlegger, and wealthy playboy Jimmy Winter (Hayden Stanes), meet on the weekend of Jimmy’s wedding. Jimmy has a penchant for marrying chorus girls, but his mother, Millicent (Joyce Bulifant), has made it clear that she will not turn the family business over to him until he has settled down with a respectable girl. As his new intended, he plans to put forth Eileen Evergreen (Emily Unnasch), daughter of Senator Max Evergreen (Jack McGee) and a noted interpreter of modern dance.
Brett Cole Young, Jennifer Knox, Douglas Graham
Billie along with her partners in crime Cookie (Douglas Graham) and Duke (Brett Cole Young) are looking for a place to hide 400 bottles of gin from the authorities. Upon discovering Jimmy has a Long Island beach house (mansion) it turns out to be a perfect location – until the wedding party arrives. Jimmy finds himself attracted to Billie, who realizes she is getting more entangled with the rich playboy than she bargained for.
Emily Rose Unnasch and ensemble
Hellbent on her mission to cure society of the evils of “demon rum,” Duchess (Cathy Newman) falls head over heels (literally) for Cookie, while Duke falls for pretty Jeannie Muldoon (Rachel Kay), who thinks Chief Berry (Tim Ewing) — the head of the Long Island Police Department after the trio of bootleggers — is related to the royal family. But Chief is a tried-and-true skirt chaser, falling for just about any woman he sees.
Get the picture? It’s lunacy from top to bottom.
The entire ensemble is simply delightful under David Eggers astute direction and stunning choreography. The pace is swift, and comedy abounds. Graham, who is a seasoned Broadway dancer and singer, has said that he never had a comic acting role like this. But you’d never know it. He is grounded in his body, graceful in his movement, and powerfully commands the stage as a hysterically funny fully fleshed-out character.
Knox plays her comedy throughline brilliantly. Particularly in her performance of “Treat Me Rough,” as tomboy Billie is on a mission to seduce Jimmy by clumsily attempting to embody the type of chorus girl he has a weakness for As she falls more and more in love with Billie, Cox adroitly balances the “tough bootlegger” with the vulnerable girl who wants her happily ever after, particularly in “Someone to Watch Over Me.”
Jennifer Knox
Stanes, as the playboy song-and-dance man, is simply sublime. His voice is like butter and he is a real charmer. His dancing is on point as well, which is showcased throughout the production and particularly in numbers like “‘S Wonderful.” Unnasch has been delighting Coachella Valley audiences for quite some time and she is stunning as Eileen. Her lilting soprano is a joyin comic numbers like “Delishious.” As an “interpreter of modern dance movement,” Unnasch’s physical comedy is heavenly. Kay turns in one of the most entertaining performances as happy-go-lucky chorus girl Jeannie; and Ewing frequently steals the show as Chief Berry, the blundering cop, with comic and vocal chops on full display. Newman chews up the scenery as she stops the show with her hysterical performance of “Looking For the Boy.”
Emily Rose Unnasch, Joyce Bulifant, Jack McGee
A seasoned veteran of stage and cinema, Joyce Bulifant is the diamond in the cast, sparkling as soon as she makes an entrance, gracefully delivering a whoppingly funny performance. Young turns in a fine performance as the moronic bootlegger Duke, particularly endearing when he pines for Jeannie. Jack McGee, solid as Senator Max, has not been on stage since he appeared in The Iceman Cometh on Broadway in 2018, but it’s like he never left.
Hayden Stanes and ensemble
It would not be a Gershwin musical without a powerful song and dance ensemble. This one is ‘s wonderful. They execute Eggers stunning period choreography (tap/jazz) with high energy vocals and bodies. They are Noah Bradford, Beverly Durrand, Brandon Halvorsen, Cristina McKeever, Luke Rands, Ali Simon, and J Pablo Stewart.
Emily Rose Unnasch and Hayden Stanes
Design elements are quite good. Jimmy Cuomo’s set is highly resourceful and even pragmatic. However, the beach house is mostly made of painted flats that could do more to convey how the wealthy lived on Long Island in the 1920s. Emily Tappan’s costumes gracefully evoke the period. I would, however, have expected to see Eileen in a much more flattering wedding gown. But it’s Gershwin, and it’s a happy ending for everyone.
The run sold out quickly and a week of performances has been added with tickets still available. But – don’t wait. Get your tickets now for this delightful night of Gershwin at its best.
photos by David A. Lee
Nice Work If You Can Get It
Coachella Valley Repertory
68510 East Palm Canyon Dr in Cathedral City
Wed & Sat at 2 & 7; Thurs & Fri at 7; Sun at 2
ends on April 21, 2024 EXTENDED to April 28, 2024
for tickets ($83 – $87), call 760.296.2966×115 or visit CVRep
