By Harry Duke
Which of the following does not belong: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Jesus Christ Superstar, Evita, Phantom of the Opera, Sunset Boulevard or School of Rock?
It’s a trick question because they are all Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals.
Even School of Rock? Yep.
Webber bought the stage rights to the 2003 Richard Linklater/Mike White film starring Jack Black and joined with playwright Julian Fellowes (Downton Abbey!) and lyricist Glen Slater (The Little Mermaid) to bring the tale of Dewey Finn’s transformation of a group of prep school students into rock stars to Broadway as a musical.
Those who know the movie, know the show. Wanna-be rockstar Dewey Finn (Declan Hackett), desperate for money, takes to impersonating his friend Ned Schneebly (Jordan Anderson) and grabs his gig as a substitute teacher at the hoity-toity Horace Green School under the watchful eye of constipated Principal Rosalie Mullins (Tamara Brooks).
Just looking for a quick payday, Finn pays little mind to the students until he discovers they all have musical talent. He envisions whipping them into shape and entering the local Battle of the Bands. Amazingly, each student blossoms under Finn’s tutelage, as does Finn himself. Now, if they can only get past their stick-in-the-mud principal and oblivious parents.
The show is about as faithful a screen-to-stage adaptation as there is, which is a good thing because the film was pretty damn near perfect. Webber’s songs don’t get in the way (much) and frequently merge nicely with an element from the film (“Stick it to the Man”).
Declan Hackett is pretty much a carbon copy of Jack Black, which is also a good thing because that’s what the audience expects to see and he bombastically delivers it.
Director Steven David Martin has a very talented group of young folk playing the students. Sylvia Whitbrook is perfect as the by-the-book Summer. Lennon Whitaker as the flamboyant Billy and William Young as the not-cool Lawrence are fun to watch. Bernadette Lilian Gibson wows when she finally opens her mouth.
Between students, teachers, parents and bands, over 40 people crowd the stage, and still many take on multiple roles. Not everyone gets mic’d up, and some dialogue gets lost. Sound cues and light cues need to be picked up, too.
As the focus is on the kids, the adults do little beyond engage in standard “parents just don’t understand” moments. The parents and teachers, all played by Raven regulars, know how to get the job done.
Musically, Elliot Davis as the leader of Dewey’s ex-band (and costume Jeanine Gray) have a lot of fun with the “I’m Too Hot for You” number. The ensemble numbers, and there are a lot, work really well and feature some energetic choreography by Katie Watts-Whitaker.
While the members of the student band each get their moment to display some musical prowess, the heavy lifting is done by a five-piece on-stage band—Greg Call, John Mayer, Scott Rosen, Joe Campbell and musical director J. Sun Howze. They rock.
At two hours and forty-five minutes it’s a long show, but credit to everyone involved for keeping the energy up. That includes the audience, which hooted and hollered throughout.
Rock on, Healdsburg.
‘School of Rock’ runs through July 13 at the Raven Performing Arts Theater, 115 North St., Healdsburg. Thu–Sat, 7:30pm; Sun, 2pm. $10–$40. 707.433.6335. raventheater.org
