On Feb. 6 and 7, students and families hopped aboard “Anything Goes,” a classic 1934 musical written by P.G. Wodehouse and Guy Bolton with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. This buoyant musical follows eccentric ship passengers on a sea voyage from New York to England.
“Anything Goes” revolves around the love affair of Billy Crocker and Hope Harcourt, a broken-down stock broker and an already-engaged debutante. Also following along for the ride is Crocker’s best friend and former evangelist, Reno Sweeney, and two public enemies, Erma Latour and Moonface Martin. Crocker hops on the S.S. American, against his boss’s wishes, to stop the wedding of Harcourt and Sir Evelyn Oakleigh, hoping to win over Harcourt’s heart.
The acting and vocals of Jacob Connor, who played Billy Crocker, were nothing short of amazing. He perfectly encapsulated the feeling of young love, while also demonstrating the difficult parts of juvenile romance, such as him and Harcourt’s uncertainty about their future together. A notable mention regarding Connor’s performance was his smooth-as-butter falsetto during “All Through the Night,” when Crocker was locked up after being caught on the ship.
Ava Jones, who played Hope Harcourt, stole the hearts of the audience with her melodious vocalization and her chemistry with Connor. Jones’s voice especially shined in “Goodbye, Little Dream, Goodbye,” with her operatic vocals filling up the entire auditorium. The voices of both Jones and Connor blended seamlessly all throughout their two duets.
Reno Sweeney, played by Stephanie Long, was one of the most outstanding parts of the show. In all five of her songs, Long displayed her beautiful singing voice while also embodying Sweeney’s charisma. She was front and center in every dance she was in and flowed flawlessly while belting memorable tunes at the exact same time. Long connected excellently with every character she interacted with and had the crowd entertained from beginning to end.
It’d be a disservice not to mention the hilarious duo that was Moonface Martin, played by Graham Neel, and Erma Latour, played by Abby White. These two were a big part of the tears of laughter and smiles all through the night. Neel had perfect comedic timing with the funny catchphrase, “there’s something wrong here,” said numerous times within the show. Neel also performed the songs “Be Like the Bluebird” and “Friendship,” which showcased his incredible voice while also mixing in his natural hilarity. White’s remarkable voice and impressive dance tricks as Latour earned well-deserved cheers, stealing the show with her playful song, “Buddie, Beware.” Her amusing Brooklyn accent and flirtatious demeanor stood out in every scene, song, and dance number she was in.
An act that completely took the audience by surprise was Junior Reynolds, who played Sir Evelyn Oakleigh. Reynolds and his London accent was a key part of the show, causing crowd-wide chuckles at his humorous obliviousness and softheartedness as Oakleigh. What resulted in the loudest gasps and cheers of act two was his performance in the song “The Gypsy in Me.” His saucy dancing, singing, and chemistry with Long had the crowd out of breath from laughter for the rest of the night.
“Anything Goes” would not have been possible without the impeccable choreography taught by Abby White, Addie Connor, and Emma Kleinhans. Every dance number fit perfectly with each song and had the audience in an upbeat spirit the entire show. The lighting and sound, run by Adyansh Das and Kennedy Gilbert, fit the mood of every scene, and the set design, run by Eamon Dunne, included part of a ship, two bedrooms, and a jail, cleverly fitting three different settings into one.
This musical, put on by Running Dog Productions, was certainly a production to remember. “Anything Goes”’s remarkable debut earned the cast a standing ovation both nights with deafening cheers to go along with it. “Now, God knows, anything goes!”
