It’s impossible not to have Dames at Sea charm your sailor pants off, as it sprints, twirls and coos with the confidence of a seven year old who knows she will make it big on Broadway some day. Like the infant, the show also tries desperately to entertain you, and while it’s not always transcendental, it will definitely put a smile on your face. The magic of the show is that it knows when to draw the line to keep the enchanting infant from becoming a grating theatre school student obsessed with their self-awareness of the craft.
When the show premiered in 1966 it was a spoof of 1930s movie musicals like 42nd Street, but now it plays more like a loving homage, an introduction even, for younger generations who have no idea who Busby Berkeley is, but who might be familiar with the storytelling codes because of how often they’ve been recycled both in film and on stage in the almost five decades since the show debuted. Featuring delightful music by Jim Wise, and book and lyrics by Robin Miller and George Haimsohn, Dames at Sea opens inside a Broadway theater where we meet Ruby (Eloise Kropp who under the right light looks like a fuller cheeked Vivien Leigh) a wide eyed ingenue who lands a musical role minutes after stepping off her bus from Utah.
Unaware of her natural talents, she is as dazzled by the idea of making her dream come true, as current diva Mona Kent (the always delicious Lesli Margehrita) is jealous and insecure of having her steal the show from under her perfectly powdered nose. The two women find themselves pining for the same sexy sailor, Dick (Cary Tedder) who also happens to be a marvelous songwriter. The small cast of characters is completed by good-hearted chorus girl Joan (Mara Davi) who takes Ruby under her wing, her beau Lucky (Danny Gardner), and theatre director Hennesy (brilliantly played by John Bolton who does dual duties also playing captain of the ship suggested by the title).
Directed and choreographed by Randy Skinner, Dames at Sea, is an effortlessly delightful musical that only aims to please its audience. It has nothing to say about the current state of the world, contributes almost nothing to any sociopolitical discourse, and yet, it feels like a necessary show, if only to remind us of the importance of high quality escapism.
