Wowsers! What a theatre weekend I had, installment #2: Friday was opening night at Circa 21 Dinner Playhouse. It’s the dog days of summer so if you’re looking to escape the “Heat Wave,” don’t hide “Under the Boardwalk.” Instead, head on down to Circa 21 to take in its current show, The Bikinis, directed by Circa’s own Brad Hauskins where you’ll be treated to some of the most iconic songs from the 50’s, 60’s and even the 70’s.
This show has been touted as the female version Jersey Boys and so it is in terms of rockin’ to the tunes of the Baby Boomer generation. Unlike Jersey Boys, where the songs walked us through the actual rise and fall and rise again of real-life Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, this script is a bit contrived in that it takes four fictional characters, the girl group The Bikinis, who reunite after a two decade hiatus, to entertain the folks attending what might be the last hurrah of a beachfront mobile home park as the residents decide whether or not to accept a buy-out of the park to real estate developers. Although the plot is somewhat forced, it doesn’t matter – we’re here for the hits from that era and that is exactly what they deliver from Bill Hyland’s “Itsy, Bitsy, Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini” to Connie Francis’ “Where the Boys Are” to Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive.”
I have to say that it’s refreshing to see an all female cast carry an entire show on their talented shoulders. Taking on the roles of the sisters in the group, Jodi and Annie, are the well-known to local theatre goers Sarah Lounsberry and, 11-year veteran Bootlegger in her first main stage appearance, Kirsten Sindelar. Rounding out the cast as Karla and Barbara are Taylor Fryza and Joelle Smith. Following on the heels of a show like Jersey Boys could be considered massively intimidating but these performers are more than up to the challenge. They kick a…you get the idea.
A special treat in this show is the presence of a live band on stage consisting of Emmett Boedeker and Sarah Leigh Beason on keyboards, Brad Hauskins on bass and Tristan Layne Tapscott on drums – honestly, is there no end to Hauskins’ and Tapscott’s talent?
It doesn’t take a “Secret Agent Man” to discover it’s the “Time of the Season” to grab your “Beach Blanket” and “Remember (Walking in the Sand).”
The Bikinis continues at Circa ‘21 Dinner Playhouse, 1828 – 3rd Avenue in Rock Island through August 24th with matinee performances on Wednesdays, evening performances Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays and Dinner performances on Sundays. Be forewarned: there is massive street construction going on right in front of the theatre so parking is at a premium.
I’m Chris Hicks…break a leg.