Jerry Springer The Opera

Reviewed: February 25,2018
 

Jerry Springer: The Opera is playing at the Signature Theatre located at 480 West 42nd Street. The Musical runs two hours fifteen minutes with one intermission. It closes on March 11, 2018.

Jerry Springer is an American television producer, former lawyer, politician, new presenter, actor and musician.

The musical ran for six hundred performances in London from April 2003 to February 2005 before touring the United States in 2006. It won four Laurence Olivier Awards. Its New York debut was in January 2008 at Carnegie Hall. Harvey Keitel played Jerry Springer.

John Rando is the director. He won a Tony Award for Urinetown: The Musical (2002) and was nominated for a Tony Award for On the Town (2015).

Derek McLane is the scenic designer. He was nominated for four Tony Awards for Anything Goes (2011), Ragtime (2010), 33 Variations (2009) and Pajama Game (2006).

Terrence Mann was nominated for three Tony Award for Pippin (2013), Beauty and the Beast (1994) and Les Miserables (1987).

Will Swenson was nominated for a Tony Award and Drama Desk Award for Hair (2009).

The musical is done in four acts, Act 1 Springerland, Act 2 Purgatory, Act 3 Hell and Act 4 Springerland.

There are people around stage hoping to be on Jerry Springers show.

Steve (Billy Hepfinger) is security. He keeps the audience from coming on stage. The warm up man (Will Swenson) tells the audience what they can and cannot do, like cheer or jeer the people on stage is okay.

When Jerry Springer (Terrance Mann) arrives there are cheers encouraged by the warm up man. Jerry introduces his first guess. Dwight (Luke Grooms) is getting married in two months and has something he want to confess to his girlfriend Peaches (Florrie Bagel). He is having an affair with her best friend Andrea (Beth Kirkpatrick). Dwight is also cheating on the friend with someone else. Not saying who it is, it’s a surprise. The second group, Montel (Brandon Contrerous) wants to tell his fiancée how to treat him when they marry. He wants to be treated like a baby. Andrea (Elizabeth Loyacano) is confused. He takes off his pants and is wearing diapers and wants them to adopt baby Jane (Jill Paice). The last couple Shawntel(Tiffany Mann) wants to be a poll dancer. Her husband Chuck (Nathaniel Backmann) calls her nasty names. Her mother Irene (Jennifer Allen) comes on stage doing the same thing.

All hell breaks loose during each encounter. The warm up man instigates the audience. Jerry has him fired. He was his hero, Jerry was his mentor. When the scene closes he has a gun in his hand and Jerry is shot.

When the show begins after intermission Jerry thinks he is dreaming he is in hell. Jerry asks Satan (Will Swenson) how he can get out. His reply was if you can get Jesus (Brandon Contreras) to apologize, well maybe you’ll get out. Things don’t go well so Adam (Nataniel Jackson) and Eve (Tiffney Mann), Mary (Jennifer Allen) and finally God (Luke Grooms) are call to help. Excuse the pun but all hell breaks loose

I’m not telling you all the good stuff! This is one hilarious, well done musical from start to finish. This is must see show.

Everyone shines, some do two roles. Will Swenson does a terrific performance.

Review by Rozanna Radakovich.

Photos by Annazor.

To read a candid interview with the cast, scroll down to photos. Click on photos for this and other shows.

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