Skylight Music Theatre's superheroine musical 'SuperYou' has the swagger of a Broadway production
Midway through “SuperYou,” I started making a mental list of who might enjoy Skylight Music Theatre’s energetic new pop-rock musical:
People who love comic books, people who liked “Fun Home,” people who want woman-centered stories, people who’ve been bullied, artists whose creativity is impaired by low self-confidence.
And, oh yes, people who go to Broadway shows to hear big voices letting it rip.
Skylight artistic director Michael Unger calls this staging of Lourds Lane's musical, which its producers say is headed for London's West End, a "world premiere developmental production," meaning it may get some video and technical upgrades before it goes to bigger venues. But as seen and heard during Wednesday's press opening night, "SuperYou" already has the bones, carriage and swagger of a Broadway production.
Bullied at school and ignored by a troubled mother, young Katie (Serena Parrish) takes comfort in the love of her older brother Matty (Chris Oram, in a terrifically warm performance), a talented comics artist who encourages her own artwork. She's haunted in her dreams by Mi Roar, a masked villain who keeps trying to choke her (played with lethal panther grace by Blake Zelesnikar). In school, young Katie draws her fellow misfit classmates as superheroines Blast (Jenna Rubaii), Seven (B Noel Thomas), Rise (Wren Rivera) and Ima-Mazing (Shelby Griswold), and herself as Lightning Girl.
Years later, the adult Katie (Kennedy Caughell) plugs away at her comics betwixt bouts of low self-confidence and distractions from Jay (Justin Matthew Sargent), a singing barista who crushes on her. But those comics characters she created as a girl keep coming back into her life as a blend of squad and conscience to help her face the final battle.
In director-choreographer JoAnn M. Hunter's staging, sketches and panels from Katie's comics (video design by Patrick W. Lord) are projected on Ann Louizos' set design. Comic books and musicals have a natural affinity. Each scene needs to deliver maximum impact.
In a cast filled with strong voices, Caughell blows away the audience with some of her peak moments; Thomas hits like a tidal wave. While the timing here is coincidence, the squad of punk, androgynous, trans and plus-size superheroines also makes "SuperYou" an affirming Pride Month show.
Parrish's young Katie frequently returns in later scenes as a memory figure or as Lightning Girl. She does wonderful work without speaking, often mirroring her adult self.
In a nearly silent role, Danceworks veteran Melissa Anderson does all she can as Katie's Mom, a part that is more plot device than fully written character. I wish Lane could invest a little more humanity in this figure, but maybe there is only so much you can fit in a musical — or a comic book.
Skylight Music Theatre's "SuperYou" continues through June 18 at Broadway Theatre Center, 158 N. Broadway. For tickets, visit skylightmusictheatre.org or call (414) 291-7800. This production is Skylight's entry in World Premiere Wisconsin, a statewide festival of new plays and musicals.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Skylight Music Theatre's 'SuperYou' has swagger of Broadway production
