Get Ready- A Dromedy with Praiseworthy Song

 

Joe Plummer really has his hands full.

As co-playwright along with Jaye T. Stewart, he’s also the director, choreographer, song composer and lyricist, along with Jaye and Debi Stewart, it’s his responsibility to sink or swim “Get Ready,” a dramedy now getting a crackerjack staging by New Horizon Theater.

Set in Chicago in the 1990s, the co-playwrights ease into the narrative with a mild boss-employee tete-a-tete. J. R. (Manny Walker) sweeps the floor of his employer’s dance studio rather reluctantly, while his employer, Knobby Coles (Art Terry) tries to spur him on with some sarcastic banter. The humorous razzing that ensues between the two is nearly equally balanced as J. R. isn’t one to be bullied and is quick with his verbal rebounds.

The tempo increases dramatically with the arrival of four of the crooners that make up the Doves, a 60s doo-wop quintet that dropped out of the limelight. Hoping to make a comeback twenty years after their prime, the singers begin to rehash memories from the past and explain adventures they’ve had since.

They include Sam Lothard as Harvey Bunch, Emir Hardy as Frankie Saunders, Leslie Howard as Vernon (Vern) Saunders and Charles Timbers as Corbiere (Corby) Johnson.

Old rivalries and hurt feelings bubble to the surface, some humorous, others baneful, along with happier reminiscences. The interplay of voices is much like the jocular back and forth in a football locker room after the game. And it’s fun to listen to.

Perhaps the most strident memory is that of one of the crooners, who seethes when he remembers that the group’s default ladies’ man, once seduced his wife. Another romantic relationship of note is Frankie’s, whose girl friend is holding his glass eye as emotional collateral, forcing Frankie to wear a black patch over his eye until it’s retrieved. One of the play’s most riveting moments come with the story of how Frankie ended up with a glass eye in the first place.

Things soon get down to business when Coles takes charge. As the group’s former manager and dance creator, he blueprints the dance moves for thequintet, who he lines up for a run through of their moves. Keeping it simple, the singers start off a bit rusty and, as they rehearse their steps, wring out as much comedy out of the skit as possible.

Charged up by their group choreographic exercises, they jump into the show’s first song, a beautifully harmonized rendition of “I Got to Get to Know Her,” a tune worthy of more recognition and airplay.

Things get even more charged with the arrival of Roscoe (Kevin Brown), the group’s ex-lead singer and kingpin. The future of the Doves lies in his hands, but he’s tempted by the goal of going solo. He’s also under the contractual control of his no-nonsense wife, Eva Dee (Angelique A. Strothers), which might just prove too large an obstacle to overturn.

Eva doesn’t appear on stage until much later, but she’s a formidable presence, dressed in some of the most glamourous and colorful outfits this side of Givenchy, There are actually three different ensembles, each one just as radiant as the one before, thanks to the handiwork of costume designer, Deryck Tynes.

Strothers has considerable acting skills, seen first as a strong woman able to hold her own, even over power, the men in her life. But when alone, she also displays another, more vulnerable side that culminates with her melancholic rendition of “Is There a Heaven for Folks with the Blues.”

Interestingly, all of the leads get their time to shine vocally. In the middle of a song, for instance, one singer gives way to another who picks up the lead where the other leaves off. All actors have strong, mellow voices.

 As Harvey, Lothard is somewhat a food addict and one of the more mellow and congenial members of the quintet. Timbers, while playing lame, manages to keep up pretty much with the others in the chorus line, but also can be explosive emotionally.

As Frankie, Hardy excels comedically, while Brown as Roscoe has charisma to burn and Terry as the dance studio owner, manages to keep the unruly bunch under control much of the time.

For a dramedy, my impression is that there’s more comedy than drama in the narrative. But that’s not to say that there aren’t some anxious moments and hurdles to overcome. To that mix, add in some wonderful soulful songs and you end up with a noteworthy production. Get ready to be entertained.

Get Ready, a production of New Horizon Theater, is at The Helen Wayne Rauh Rehearsal Hall at Pittsburgh Public Theater, 621 Penn Avenue in Downtown Pittsburgh. Now through November 9. For tickets, go to https://www.newhorizontheater.org.