"Jekyll & Hyde: The Musical" opened at the Spring Lake Theatre, located at 300 Madison Avenue in Spring Lake, New Jersey, this past Friday to a packed house. Approximately 45 minutes before showtime, an announcement was made that the show would be beginning about 15 minutes late due to a sudden injury to one of the performers. I don't know what magic they pulled off, but there were definitely no noticeable hiccups in the performance. No longer living in Monmouth County, it has been awhile since I checked out a show at this theatre, but in the past I have seen quite a few. However, i have to make the bold statement that this is the best one that I have seen here.
While the entire cast did an amazing job, I have to mention the standout performances of Joseph DeMaio as Henry Jekyll and Edward Hyde and Aisa Feratovic as Lucy Harris. Feratovic has recently graduated Drexel University and has previously appeared as Sandy in "The SpongeBob Musical," Paulette in "Legally Blonde," Cosette in "Les Miserables" and in "Godspell." A Wagner College graduate, DeMaio described this performance as "his dream role." He has been seen in "Guys & Dolls," "Scrooge," "Crazy For You," "Next To Normal" and " You Can't Take It with You."
Possessing a very strong voice, DeMaio sung in different voices for the Hyde and Jekyll characters. Utilizing the lights to change his skin to a greenish color, it appeared that each persona was a different person. During intermission, the percussionist from the orchestra, Dan McMillan, was jokingly proclaiming the this show is too dark for Spring Lake. I am sure there were many people from the same town in the audience, as I noticed people exiting their homes and heading toward the theatre on my way there. In addition, the standing ovation at the end of the show was well-deserved.
The show runs through October 26th and is well worth the ticket price. Everything from the set design to the music and the singing and acting didn't make me feel like I was watching a community theatre performance. It was definitely head and shoulders above my expectations. Kudos to the entire cast and crew with special shout-outs to Beth Moore (Musical Director), Ian Moore (Director), Jackie Drudy (Stage Manager) and Patricia Barry (Producer and Costume Coordinator).