Personally, I find Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat to be one of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s best scores. It’s fun, diverse, and allows for a genuinely fun time with a fairly easy-to-follow story, whether you know the biblical context or not. CenterStage Clovis Community Theatre has opened a sincerely stellar, fun, and intoxicatingly energetic production.
Melinda Salcido and Diego Sosa lead the production as Narrator and Joseph, respectively, and do so with the precise flare for storytelling and leading gravitas audiences expect. Salcido’s opening “Prologue” is coupled beautifully with Sosa’s “Any Dream Will Do.” Both bring eager, earnest warmth their roles require while letting their vocal chops shine. Salcido’s ongoing belt and head voice shimmer with ease throughout the deceptively demanding vocal journey the Narrator has. Sosa is consistently strong vocally and allows the vocal calisthenics to truly elevate the score in a commanding “Close Every Door.” Judith Dickinson’s vocal direction creates a wonderful wall of sound with the Brothers, Wives, and Children’s Chorus ensembles. “Jacob and Sons” and “Go, Go, Go Joseph” are act one standouts while “Song of the King” steals act two, led by a fantastic Dan Aldape as Pharaoh.
Michael Lollis is dynamite as Reuben/Baker, leading a terrifically twangy “One More Angel in Heaven” and teaming up with a solid Brandon Hatch, as the Butler, in the opening section of the aforementioned “Go, Go, Go Joseph.” Christopher Hoffman delivers vocal and comedic justice in his leadership of “Those Canaan Days.” Rounding out the Brothers solos is Jonathan Silva’s animatedly fun rendition of “Benjamin’s Calypso.” Bryan Carlson is a perfectly cast Potiphar, exuding the bumbling assurance the character exudes, and Yzabella Huerta Moultrie is a standout dancer as Potiphar’s Wife and featured well in “Those Canaan Days.” As a whole, the Brothers and Wives execute Erin Roberts’s explosive, lively choreography with an energetic commitment that transcends the stage and had the audience clapping and bopping every chance we got. Adding to the visual pop that is Roberts’s staging is Rachel Hibler’s vibrant, flashy costuming.
Directors Darren Tharp and Kellerie Aldape have helmed a fully-realized production that can be summed up in one word: sincere. From start to finish, the pacing and utilization of the Children’s Chorus brings a sincere quality to telling this story as written while ensuring the audience is privy to experiencing the joy and feel-good vibes Joseph... has to offer. Tharp and Aldape have created a production where the show’s familial embrace is so palpably part of what is seen on stage that it is purely felt in the audience. Go, go, go get your tickets now and experience for yourself what this classic show has to provide for modern audiences.
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