DON’T EVEN THINK ABOUT SKIPPIN’ PIPPIN

Pippin offers musical theater lovers the complete package: brilliant performances, terrific directing, a stimulating book by Roger O. Hirson and a cheeky, sophisticated score by Stephen Schwartz of Wicked fame that got more than one kid addicted to its still-in-print cast album and its soaring ballads and bouncy Broadway burlesque. It opened on The Great White Way in 1972 and, directed by Bob Fosse, became one of the hits of the 1970s, running a whopping 1,944 performances. Closing its 80th season, the Coronado Playhouse is reviving the show in a scintillating production that adds luster to the resumé of a theater which enjoys presenting challenging shows embellished with the playhouse’s personal touches.

In what vaguely resembles an early medieval European kingdom — though there is no indication of where or when the action takes place (“then or now, or somewhere or thereabouts”) — Pippin (Gabi Chen) is a young prince who is dissatisfied with his life and yearns for a truly extraordinary existence. The lad sets out to find that special life, egged on by a group of traveling thespians and the mysterious Leading Player, a Sportin’ Life emcee who devilishly urges Pippin to explore facets of life that, once discovered to be empty, may lead the youth to despair and maybe even suicide (Jackson Taitano takes on the role that kick-started Ben Vereen’s career as a Broadway star).

Pippin (known to history as “Pepin the Hunchback”) is the disgruntled son of the tyrannical and bloodthirsty King Charlemagne (Roberto Castillo, Jr.), creator of the Holy Roman Empire. Eager for his “Corner of the Sky” and always in a funk over his sheer lack of a destiny, Pippin moves from scholarship to soldiery against the Visigoths, competing with his wicked half-brother Lewis (Manny Cardeiro) and his conniving and incestuous stepmother Fastrada (Lenelle Wylie) for the treacherous affections of his empire-building dad.

Between Pippin seeking victory on the battlefield and getting advice from Grandma Berthe (Kara Tuckfield) and eventually trying romance with a widow, Catherine (Kaitlyn Summers), the production injects an abundance of non-realistic staging bits, like actors speaking directly to the audience. We get a giant duck a few times — it belongs to Catherine’s son Theo (Brissia Lappinga) — and even a live dog makes a brief cameo appearance.

The production features fifteen mostly young performers, all of whom are exceptional. For much of the show, the chorus is in overdrive with “Magic to Do,” providing a dazzling display of Yarrow Severn‘s precision choreography within the limited performing space. They sound amazing, and the expressions on their faces show they are deeply into their characters emotionally.

The star among stars in the ensemble is the exuberant and genuine Gabi Chen, a female who plays the masculine title character of Pippin. Tuckfield (joyously leading us in the infectious chorus of “No Time at All”), Summers (“I Guess I’ll Miss the Man”), and Wylie (“Spread a Little Sunshine”) get extra high marks for their potent singing. The rest of this elite cast consists of Manny Cardeiro, Iker Leal, Brandon Michael, Bradley Moon, Emma Parrott, Cecile Pham, Em Danque and Ms. Severn.

Director Hunter Brown leads a brilliant technical staff in bringing this complex yet accessible narrative alive in both sight and sound. Brown’s theatrical wizards include music director Jessica Stone, sound designer Ash Floyd, scenic designer Tim Baran, props designer Frank Seed, and costume designer Teresa E. Craven — all of whom are on imagination overload.

A quartet consisting of Aleah Lincey on the keyboard, Julian Straus on guitar, Angelica Pruitt on bass, and Chris Potente on percussion create a rich musical fantasy world, sounding like a small orchestra, strengthening the 19 original songs that may not be hits on their own, but they fit perfectly within the soundscape of Pippin’s world. Other great numbers include “Simple Pleasures,” “Glory,” and “Morning Glow.”

As with Schwartz’s Godspell, Pippin is constructed like Children’s Theater — although it’s clearly for the older crowd, dealing with regicide, combat, and lust, to name a few. Viewers are alerted that the action includes on-stage violence, but it’s cartoonish violence that shouldn’t distress anyone. Customers are far more likely to rejoice in the pleasure of enjoying brilliant theater artists offering two-and-a-half-hours of the most imaginative entertainment I have enjoyed in many seasons.

photos by Ken Jacques

Pippin
Coronado Playhouse, 1835 Strand Way
Thurs & Fri at 8; Sat at 2 & 8; Sun at 2
ends on November 2, 2025
for tickets, call 619.435.4856 or visit Coronado Playhouse