Summer TV doldrums
got you down? Missing Mr. Shue, Rachel, and Kurt? Jubilations Dinner Theatre
feels your pain, and brings some of the Glee cast to life with their current
show playing until June 24th.
Glee – in which people randomly burst out into pop and rock tunes – is a
natural fit for Jubilations, which for nearly a decade has blended parody with
musical theatre to entertain Calgarians. In Jump For Glee the show pokes
fun at some of the aspects of Glee that stretch believability – people in their
20's and 30's playing teenagers, the ability to have a tightly choreographed
number to perform in a matter of minutes, and the somewhat unrealistic
relationship between teachers and students. At it's core though, the production
has the same appeal as what drew us to the TV show in the first place – great
voices singing familiar songs.
The show is set during a fundraising talent competition. The Mr. Shoo (Danny
Gullekson) is hosting a talent show that features the school's various clubs,
including glee club No Directions. A smaller cast means that some of our
favorites like Puck and Mercedes are not featured, but the core characters with
slightly different names of Finn (Tenaj Williams), Rachelle (Kelly Benzing),
Kurt (Jeff Rivet), and Bethany (Gillian Moon) carry the show. Of course, Glee
is nothing without an antagonist, and Michelle Hoppe's Sue Stallone captures
the essence of the TV character in a show-stealing performance.
Gullekson busts a move breaking out in raps and backflips and Benzing leaves
you in awe with her amazing voice, including tackling Crazy On You; considering some of the performances of this song in past Jubilations shows, it is a
daunting task she more than lives up to.
From top to bottom the cast is enthusiastic
and energetic and successfully bring Glee to life on stage. If you
haven't checked out Jubilations in awhile, this is a great show to return to.