Stage Review
'Side Show' provides some good moments

You’ve probably not heard of Bill Russell and Henry Krieger, nor of their musical, "Side Show," now in its Hawai‘i premiere at Manoa Valley Theatre. You’ve also probably not heard of Daisy and Violet Hilton, Siamese twins joined at the hip, who spent the Great Depression in a freak show and later appeared in vaudeville and a couple of B movies.

So why should a musical about this curious pair warrant your attention and the cost of a couple of tickets? The truth is, it almost doesn’t.

"Side Show" played a scant four months on Broadway in 1997 and none of its songs has survived in a big way, although the show developed a small

following. It’s neither ground-breaking nor grotesque and, while it has a few big numbers, it’s essentially an intensely personal and sensitive story.

The two girls just want to be normal, but fate and a string of money-hungry exploiters won’t let them. Somehow, being joined at the hip can’t help but attract crowds and unhappiness.

John Rampage (director and choreographer) and Melina Lillios (musical director) pull together a cast of good singers for this production, but the ensemble lacks the sheer physicality necessary to punch up Act One. That’s where we meet the sisters and follow them out of the freak show, and where we must sense their raw environment and the significance of their escape.

Act Two gains some strength from Cathie Valdovino’s fabulous array of showy costumes and the lopsided and teetering love pentagon that arises from maturing character relationships. Here, individual performances neatly dovetail with the music and the story begins to develop some stature. Still, not enough happens to rescue the show from simply following a journey from physical to emotional deformity.

‘Side Show’ 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 4 p.m. Sundays, 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays through March 25 Manoa Valley Theatre $28 (discounts for students, seniors, military and patrons) 988-6131

Yvonne Iversen-Filius and Katie Shriver nicely complement each other as Daisy and Violet. Their voices blend well musically and, while their solos are effective, their duets produce real emotional depth. Separate characters emerge — an assertive Daisy and a timid Violet — and offer texture and counterpoint. The pair also create the illusion that they are physically conjoined — so effectively that their separation in the final number is tangibly felt.

Joseph Morales is the one to watch as Buddy Foster, Violet’s uncertain suitor. Playing way above his 17 years and showing a great deal of poise and maturity, his soft shoe routine on "One Plus One Equals Three" is a real highlight. Emerson Green also does powerful work with "You Should Be Loved," pulling controlled emotion from a song built on unrequited love.

Douglas Scheer props up an unsympathetic role as Daisy’s love interest and Scott Moura has good moments as the freak-show barker.

Don Ranney's set design is wide and colorful, and deftly adapts the traditional Elizabethan stage to serve as a flexible background to the scenes.

There are several good moments in "Side Show," but there aren’t enough of them to make this a remarkable musical.

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