Musicals are famously expensive to produce. (Wicked reportedly cost $14 million to mount on Broadway; touring and local productions are less expensive but remain considerable.) And audiences for musicals are famously conservative, generally preferring shows written 50, 60, or 70 years ago by composers and lyricists who are mostly dead (or Stephen Sondheim) to something new by living artists.
One of the three openers, Fanatical, is quite strong, however. And a 33 percent success rate is pretty good. The other two shows still need lots of work.
The last show on the bill, American Smoothie (book and lyrics by Nick Jester, music by David von Kampen), is another show that needed more time in the incubator. Jester and von Kampen’s songs are halfway decent and their characters are interesting. The show focuses on a hapless, socially awkward IT guy working for a dysfunctional American company. His boss is an idiot. His coworkers are fools. And he has a crush on the office hottie, who doesn’t have a clue he’s interested in her.
Through 7/19: times vary; see website Den Theatre 1329-1333 N. Milwaukee 773-609-2336cmtf.org $15-$20, $120 festival pass
