Theatre & Stage reviews by SalsaChicago.com critic Al Bresloff

"Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat"

Over the years, I for one am sorry to say, I have never taken the ride to Munster Indiana's Theatre at The Center, but now that I have, I promise I will return. This is a sparkling theater with comfortable seating, good views from all sides and of greater importance, dynamic productions. I spoke with many of the season subscribers and found that most of them came to one show and subscribed for the rest. After seeing their current production, " Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat", Andrew Lloyd Weber and Tim Rice's Award Winning Broadway hit, staged by William Pullinsi (who does a remarkable job), I plan to make sure that we return to see more of their offerings (to let you know as well). Munster is a very short drive from the downtown area and from the South side, a hop, skip and jump.

For those of you who are not familiar with "Joseph", it is a musical based on the classical Bible tale of Jacob and his twelve sons. Joseph, his favorite is given a coat of many colors and his jealous brothers sell him into slavery. Joseph has dreams and is able to interpret others' dreams and this gift causes the Pharaoh to raise him to a position of power enabling him to reunite with his family and save them from the starvation they have been living with during the famine. This story is told in a very modern, upbeat, contemporary fashion and has many references to our pop-culture including the Pharaoh (a splendid interpretation by the charming Jeffrey Max, who truly knows how to play an audience) being an Elvis type personality. The cast is compose of many your local performers, some making their professional debuts along with some of Chicago's favorites.

The Narrator is the always-marvelous Roberta Duchak, Matt Rafferty is Joseph and while he does the role well, he seemed to be a little "stiff" until act two. Veteran actor David Perkovich deftly handles the role of Jacob and the brothers are a dynamic mixture of voices and personalities. The three that "solo", Richard Strimer as Levi, Ronald Duncan as Napthali and Scott Calcagno (a true comedian who milks the most out of his "Those Canaan Days") are fun to watch and the ensemble of women in this production do a lot more than in previous productions I have seen. Most of you who read me on a regular basis know that I am always saying how important the ensemble is to making a production complete, and these four ladies, truly do this. For this production- Ericka Mac, Amy Olsen, Anne Elizabeth Acker and newcomer, Penny Shack are always on cue, on tune and have lovely voices. They also handle Stacey Flaster's powerful choreography with ease.

If you have not seen "Joseph" in the past, but heard much about it, take the ride out to Munster and see this one, you won't be sorry. If you have seen the play before and still love the music and fun of the show, you can rest assured the drive to Indiana is worth it. "Joseph" will run through October 22nd with performances as follows: Wednesdays at 2 p.m. Thursdays at 2 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. Sundays at 2:30 p.m.

Tickets range from $32-$25 (a great value for such a wonderful experience) and can be purchased by calling 219-836-3255 or 1-800-511-1552 (www.tickets.com on line) For more info on the theater visit www.theatreatthecenter.org.