Review: Cheyenne Jackson and Kevin Cahoon in La Cage Aux Folles at Pasadena Playhouse

When one thinks of the brash musical La Cage Aux Folles, gritty does not usually come to mind. The bare-bones production at Pasadena Playhouse lacks the gaudy, bawdy luster promised in the title song, and instead leans into tackiness.

The Tony Award-winning musical, based on the French farce by Jean Poiret, broke barriers by exposing mainstream theatergoers to a loving gay couple, particularly during the terror and rampant misinformation of the AIDS era. Georges (Cheyenne Jackson) owns a flashy gay nightclub in Saint-Tropez, where his headliner is the drag queen Zaza (Kevin Cahoon). Out of drag, Zaza is Albin, George’s loving and confounding longtime companion, “mother” to Georges’s 24-year-old son Jean-Michel (Ryan J. Haddad). Jean-Michel’s fiancée Anne (Shannon Purser) has homophobic parents. Instead of accepting and loving his family, Jean-Michel chooses to de-gay their house and hide his “mother” from the prying, judgmental future in-laws (Mad TV stars Michael MacDonald and Nicole Parker).

Fierstein’s libretto celebrates the unions that used to be hidden in the closet. Even though the son, through insecurity and shame, is wretched to his parents, the book treats the familial learning arc with respect. And the score is one of Herman’s best. Showstoppers like the title song, “We Are What We Are,” and “The Best of Times,” mix beautifully with lovely ballads like “Look Over There” and the closet-shattering anthem “I Am What I Am.”

Jackson is a talent with a stirring voice, but his Georges feels uninvested in the story. Calhoon is miscast as Albin/Zaza. He doesn’t have the vocal range for the role, so many verses are brought down an octave, and he doesn’t believably portray an internationally lauded drag superstar. Worse, they have no chemistry, and Calhoon comes off as shrill, which makes it difficult for the audience to warm to his portrayal. Because Fierstein focuses on Albin and Georges, the young couple do get the short shrift in the script. There is little characterization against which either Haddad or Purser can play.

Comedians MacDonald and Parker heighten the humor when on stage (which sadly is not enough), more when they are the ultra-conservative prig and his alcoholic wife than as the stereotypically bumbling French restaurant owners they also play. Resident Playhouse scene stealer George Salazar makes every laugh count as the outrageous butler/maid Jacob. Of the Cagelles, professional drag queen Kay BeBe Queue and Salina EsTitties have the best stage presence. Paul Vogt is also hilarious, with his deadpan stare and dangling cigarette as perpetually jaded Chantal.

Director Sam Pinkleton (who reconfigured the Playhouse several seasons ago for the cleverly staged Head Over Heels) appears to be deconstructing the musical’s structure. The sets by David Zinn are no-frills and reveal the cabaret to be rundown. David Reynoso’s costumes, an eye-numbing combination of lycra, loofa sponges, and streamers, looks like a tacky Party City special. The choreography by Ani Taj strips away the high kicks and taps and barely has the dancers move. Without any flair, the visuals are dull and fruitless. However, the orchestra, led by Darryl Archibald, sounds as vibrant as ever.

The question is, why deconstruct La Cage Aux Folles? Taking away the glitter and charm that is inherent in the material doesn’t comment on that experience or elevate the original concept; it only leaves a leaden production.