Perfect pairs—peanut butter and chocolate, steak and red wine, maple syrup and pancakes, etc.—may have first come together by accident, or perhaps because of great effort. Now we can add another perfect pairing to the list: the Halloween season and Revolution Stage Company’s production of Evil Dead: The Musical.
If you’re unfamiliar with Evil Dead, here is a quick primer: The franchise was born in 1981 with The Evil Dead, a low-budget film written and directed by Sam Raimi and starring his friend Bruce Campbell. After a sequel in 1987, a third film, called Army of Darkness, was released in 1993, adding comedic and slapstick elements. The franchise also spawned a television series and video games.
In 2003, a Canadian creative team used Sam Raimi’s characters and created Evil Dead: The Musical. It combines the plots of the first two films, but offers the comedic slapstick tone of the third, with campy one-line jokes generously interspersed with horror elements. The musical opened in Toronto in 2003. It enjoyed a successful Off-Broadway run in New York in 2006 and has been produced in more than 500 venues around the world.
Revolution Stage’s production is the Coachella Valley premiere and features a dynamic, energetic cast of performers directed and choreographed by Carlos Garcia. He has been blessed with a wonderfully clever, extremely functional set designed by Joyanne Tracy. Lighting and tech director Nick Wass keeps the countless special effects flowing as the crazy story moves along.
In a nutshell: a group of five students on spring break arrive by car in a forested area and follow leader Ash (Julian Perez), who tells them they are going to stay at an abandoned cabin. Linda, his girlfriend (Samantha Simonds), is smitten with Ash, as her large, expressive eyes telegraph. Cheryl, Ash’s sister (Zelaya Sanchez), is the loner of the group. Ash’s best friend, Scott (James Slaybaugh), is the horndog, with a stereotypical shapely blonde honey, Shelly (Abby Kapadia), glued to his side.
A mysterious book is found. It is written in a language unfamiliar to the uninvited cabin visitors. When it is opened, demons are unleashed. Cue the campy mayhem.
A costumer is not listed in the program, but it should be noted that the tree costumes are very well executed and certainly provide a terror element during Cheryl’s encounter with them. There was also nice progression of costumes that had to be switched to show changes in dirt, blood, sweat etc.
With people dying and then reappearing unexpectedly, it did at times get confusing, but that was part of the fun. Late in Act One, we meet new characters Anne (Kapadia) and Ed (Alfredo Bazua), passengers arriving from Cairo. It seems that Anne’s family owns the cabin. On their way to the cabin, they encounter a local rustic named Jake (Jason Ayestas).
Musical director Paul Cracchiolo has done a nice job with a group of performers with varying levels of singing talents and experience. The musical tracks seemed to do their intended job. A strong point of the show was when musical numbers included choreography; the dances were well-rehearsed and entertaining. The high point came with the large group song and dance, “Do the Necronomicon.” It reminds a bit of “The Time Warp” from The Rocky Horror Show.
There were several times when the musical accompaniment overpowered the singing voice of the performer. Microphones amplify sound, and if the performer is not speaking clearly and enunciating the sounds at the ends of words, they will not be understood, and important plot information can be lost. Because of the nature of this show—with outbursts, yelling and screaming—the sound at times becomes irritating, and any word meanings are lost. A very good example of an actor who could be heard and understood is Jason Ayestas as Jake!
Evil Dead: The Musical is not an easy show to mount. Garcia kept the focus where it was needed, and the pacing was steady—very admirable for his directing debut! Perez displayed a wonderful stage presence and superb physical comedy skills.
Kudos to all in the cast for having a good time bringing this two-hour marathon to life!
Evil Dead: The Musical will be performed at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday, through Saturday, Nov. 1, at Revolution Stage Company, 611 S. Palm Canyon Drive, in Palm Springs. Tickets start at $28. For tickets or more information, visit www.revolutionstagecompany.com.