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LIGHTNING REVIEW: 'Dreamcoat' is a dazzling explosion of color

Preston Dyar, Lance Bordelon and Jessica Crouch star in 'Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat' at the Flat Rock Playhouse.

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat races by on the stage of the Flat Rock Playhouse in a dazzling explosion of color, musical power and panache.
It’s a fun, sexy show that has patrons cheering from the start and on their feet for the “Megamix” finale that recaps a good portion of the music we’ve just seen.
The Playhouse cast two newcomers — Jessica Crouch as the narrator and Lance Bordelon as Joseph — who do not disappoint in their Flat Rock debut.
As Joseph, Bordelon is equal to the heavy load of singing and dancing the leading role demands and Crouch moves the story along with skill and a strong singing voice.
Set “way, way back, many centuries, not long after the Bible began," the 1970 Tim Rice-Andrew Lloyd Webber collaboration tells the story from Genesis of Joseph from the house of Jacob. Jealous of the splendid coat of many colors Jacob has given his favorite son, Joseph’s brothers sell him into slavery. He survives a bum rap and prison and wins his freedom with his extraordinary gift for interpreting dreams.
He’s also very smart about food conservation and what we might today call sustainable farming. He knows to put aside a portion of the food crop for the coming years of famine. That pays off big time and leads to the final redemptive scene with the now-chastened brothers and Jacob, played by Preston Dyar.
In her direction and choreography, Amy Jones has masterfully mixed the cast of seasoned professionals with this year’s solid corps of apprentices to produce dazzling ensemble numbers.
The Act I ending “Go, Go, Go Joseph,” the hilarious “Those Canaan Days” (starring Jose Luaces) and Joseph’s “Any Dream Will Do” are high spots in a show packed with highlights.
Costumes!!! I wrote in my notes.
The costume shop headed by Ashli Arnold Crump must have scissored and stitched a football field worth of fabric to create the rainbow of clothing that lights up the stage. As always, Dennis Maulden has built an attractive, colorful and versatile set.
I’m not sure if other “Dreamcoat” productions feature glow-sticks but they made for a nice addition. (Props Master Paul Feraldi first bought a supply from the Dollar store that fell apart during rehearsal. He had to special order them.)
Technikids Von Alberto, Harper Callahan, Marissa Connelly, Brice Farris, Jayna Gerber, Kyra Hewitt, Riley Hewitt, Sara Jane Killian, Ezekial Mercado, Auden Pelz, Kaia Pelz, Kris Saucedo and Ava Treadway look like they’re having the time of their lives in the dance ensembles and the audience profits from that enthusiasm.
From the opening curtain to the show-ending megamix, “Dreamcoat” rips through 24 songs and as many dance numbers at a breathtaking pace. The finale on Friday night clocked out at 9:47 p.m., which would be in time for a late nosh in a town that didn’t roll up its Main Street at 9.
When Dreamcoat is over you might be hungry for one more helping of music or even ready to see the show a second or third time. It’s that good.

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Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat runs through Aug. 20. Performances are 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are $15-50 and can be purchased by calling the Playhouse box office at 828-693-0731, toll-free at 866-732-8008 or online at www.flatrockplayhouse.org.