The plot of Schmigadoon! follows Melissa and Josh, two diametrically opposite folks, as they embark on a backpacking trip in an attempt to rekindle their troubled relationship. They get lost and find themselves in the town of Schmigadoon, a place where the citizens see every encounter as an opportunity to work things out through song and, perhaps, dance. Melissa and Josh decide to stay the night and continue their hike the next morning. But when they try to leave, they find that every time they try to cross over the bridge that leads out of town, they wind up returning to the town center. A leprechaun informs them that they cannot leave the town until they discover their true love. That quest and the people they encounter during it are what make up the entire show.
If the name of the town sounds familiar, it’s because the concept of the show references Lerner and Loewe’s Brigadoon. In fact, all the songs in Cinco Paul’s score refer to iconic musical moments in American musical theater that are embedded in our collective national subconscious and that, for many of us, have served as touchstones in our lives. Recognizing the references and recognizing that we recognize them is one of the huge pleasures of this show. (Just for fun after you’ve seen the show, you can find online lists of the songs in Schmigadoon! and the original numbers in musicals that they reference or parody.)
This Kennedy Center production is a world premiere, adapted from the Emmy Award-winning television show that streamed for two seasons on Apple+. Broadway Center Stage has assembled an unbeatable cast for this comfortingly affectionate and dazzlingly accomplished sendup of American musical theater history, traditions, aspirations, and excesses. With its abundance of primary color, high-buttoned haberdashery, flaring skirts, and athletic dance, the show is the embodiment of Nellie Forbush’s (Rogers and Hammerstein’s South Pacific) infectious, if parochial, “cock-eyed” optimism.
The art direction captures practical simplicity of shows of an earlier era with painted drops and curtains that act as background to detailed hand-built costumes and props. Most of the performers here are Broadway veterans for whom this is clearly not their first time at the rodeo. Featured in the cast are Alex Brightman (Josh), Sara Chase (Melissa), Kevin Del Aguila (The Reverend Layton/Leprechaun), Ann Harada (Florence Menlove), McKenzie Kurtz (Betsy McDonough), Isabelle McCalla (Emma Tate), Javier Muñoz (Doc Lopez), Brad Oscar (Mayor Menlove), Emily Skinner (Mildred Layton), and Ryan Vasquez (Danny Bailey). These folks clearly know and love what they are doing, and they — and the rest of the cast — share that love with the audience.
The delightful exception to the cast’s long résumés in show business is eight-year-old Ayaan Diop, who plays Carson Tate, the grade school-aged brother of the town librarian, Emma Tate (Isabelle McCalla). McCalla and young Diop inhabit their relationship fully, giving the determinedly artificial environment of the plot an authentic heart. It is a tribute to director Christopher Gattelli (and to the discipline, enthusiasm, and focus of the actor himself) that Diop receives heartfelt and enthusiastic applause after every single exit line he delivers with his consistently clean and unfussy style.
You may not count yourself among those who are the target audience for musical theater. But given the chaotic times that the United States is in, this emphatic and committed production of Schmigadoon! serves as an invigorating reminder of how welcome the balms of optimism and joy can be — no matter how long or short a time we might have them.
Running Time: Approximately two hours and 40 minutes, with one intermission.
Schmigadoon! plays plays through February 9, 2025, presented by Broadway Center Stage in the Eisenhower Theater at The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 2700 F St NW, Washington, DC. Purchase tickets ($99–$315) online, or by calling (202) 467-4600 or toll-free at (800) 444-1324. Box office hours are Monday-Saturday, 10 am-9 pm, and Sunday 12pm-9 pm. A limited number of $49 Rush tickets become available at 3 pm for every performance.
The program for Schmigadoon! is online here.
COVID Safety: Masks are optional in all Kennedy Center spaces for visitors and staff. If you prefer to wear a mask, you are welcome to do so. See Kennedy Center’s complete COVID Safety Plan here.
Schmigadoon!
Based on the Emmy Award-Winning Apple Original Series
Book, music, and lyrics by Cinco Paul
Directed and Choreographed by Christopher Gattelli
Scenic Design by Scott Pask; Costume Design by Linda Cho; Lighting Design by Jen Schriever; Sound Design by Haley Parcher; Wig Design by Tom Watson; Orchestrations by Doug Besterman and Mike Morris; Musical Supervision. by David Chase; Production Stage Manager by Matthew Lacey; Associate Director: Bethany Pettigrew; Associate Choreographer: Lou Castro; Musical Direction: Steven Malone; Associate Music Director: Kelly Thomas
Additional cast: Phillip Attmore (Freddy); Brandon Block (Buford Riggs); Holy Ann Butler (Helen Pritt); Max Clayton (Larry the Fireman); Kimberly Immanuel (Zaneeta); Eloise Kropp (Nancy); Jess Leprotto (Pete); Nathan Lucrezio (Farmer McDonough) Lauralyn McClelland (Ruth O’Reilly); Shina Ann Morris (Norma Nelson); Angel Reda (The Countess Gabrielle von Blerkom); Richard Riaz Yoder (Harvey the Innkeeper)
