Monty Python’s Spamalot: Hilariously Brilliant
Brava! Spamalot’s, 2005 Tony Award, win for Best Musical was definitely well deserved. The traveling tour of Monty Python’s Spamalot fought off snow to perform at Bloomsburg last Friday. Although winter storm Nemo, blew through the area, the sold out show continued without a hitch.
Brava! Spamalot’s, 2005 Tony Award, win for Best Musical was definitely well deserved. The traveling tour of Monty Python’s Spamalot fought off snow to perform at Bloomsburg last Friday. Although winter storm Nemo, blew through the area, the sold out show continued without a hitch.
One of the most refreshing aspects of the performance was the use of live music. A hush grew over the auditorium as the audience’s attention was grabbed by the hum of the orchestra warming up. Throughout the entire performance, the orchestra played beautifully, and had amazing timing with all of the goofy noises and musical instruments used to enhance the comedic style of the show.
The bright, larger-than-life costumes and sets really captured the mood of the performance. A character merely had to walk out on stage without saying anything, and the crowd laughed hysterically at the over the top attire. The assortment of costumes varied anywhere from a knight and a nun to a salsa dancer and Vegas, dancer garb.
The night began with a narrator discussing an overview of Medieval England. In a silly misunderstanding, a group of singers and dancers made their way on stage to sing, “The Fisch Schlapping Song,” about Finland. The narrator arrived back on stage to reveal that he had been talking about England not Finland.
The main characters, King Arthur and his group of knights, had everyone laughing from start to finish. On their quest to find the Holy Grail, they met a whole slew of witty characters that were just over the top. Even when a character wasn’t speaking, their background acting continued to keep the audience’s attention.
In Act II, the cast revealed that the clue behind finding the Holy Grail was a group of rocks that spelled out D. 101. After a bit of deliberation they realized that the clue was actually in the audience, seat D. 101. The lucky audience member in that seat was chosen to come on stage while the cast sang to her. King Arthur gave a little shout out to the local ice cream shop downtown, Brennan’s Big Chill, for giving him “two extra scoops.” The crowd screamed and cheered as the cast broke character to pay homage to their hometown.
Overall, the performance was beyond brilliant. All of the actors were on point. Although their voices weren’t the most amazing to be heard, the slight inconsistencies in their ranges made the songs even better and ridiculous. Fun was had by all from start to finish. Braving the terrible weather conditions was entirely worth the risk to see such an unparalleled performance.
The next Celebrity Artist Series performance in the lineup is Brazilian jazz singer, Luciana Souza. Grammy nominee, Souza will perform in Carver Hall on February 17 at 7:30 p.m. Be sure to get your tickets early. It’ll be a performance that you won’t forget.
