Song of the South...

The big question I ask myself when I see a show is "why?" 

Why must this exist? What message does it say? Why is this the best medium to communicate a particular story? 

For Sweet Home Alabama - the question becomes why is this better than the movie it is based upon from 20 years ago? 

The script is nearly identical, and this particular script wasn't particularly groundbreaking back in the day. Adding music to something doesn't automatically make it better - in fact in many cases of jukebox musicals it frequently makes it worse. 

Now this is a HUGE cast for a Fringe show.  A pet peeve of mine is when a character is only there to be a member of the chorus. I hate it on small stages, I hate it on Broadway and everything in-between. If there is a character onstage, I like it when they are a character. They should have a name and a purpose to be there otherwise they are just human props- and this show has a lot of human props. This is not a dealbreaker in and of itself of course, but it would be nice to see that everyone onstage was given their own moment to justify their existence in this world. 

Now initially I had high hopes for this. The first two songs seemed to set up the idea that this was going to be a retro female led country music romp. Opening with Shania and then going into Faith Hill? A female country jukebox musical with a focus on retro songs from the era? Brilliant. This falls apart in the third song when it takes a hard pivot into male country, and then shortly after falls further into the abyss with modern male country. This show set itself up for something truly exciting and different and had they kept with the female empowerment tone, from the era, for a Reese Witherspoon movie adaptation, I think this show could have been a home run. But with a mishmash of songs from every era with no solid through line, from a musical standpoint it becomes muddled. Country music has changed since the 90's - and not necessarily for the better. I wish that they'd focused on the retro 90's tone as it's a fertile ground to pull from. (I recognize that the song Sweet Home Alabama would have to be in there - but you could work with it). 

This is apparent because most of the best moments in the show adhere to this vibe. This Kiss, Redneck Woman - They open the show with Man I Feel Like a Woman (setting the tone for the entire show! This could have been the thesis of the entire piece!!) and it has an air of light and fun! More of this please! Throw in more Martina McBride, Reba, LeeAnn Rimes- HELL go back further! Nancy Sinatra! Patsy Cline! SO MANY OPTIONS! 

Okay- enough of my tirade for female empowerment - let's get to the show itself. 

There are a few standouts in the cast: Redneck Woman is great, Billy Ray is fantastic, Star shines - but nothing truly feels Fringe here. They take the show so seriously which is commendable, but the whole piece has this serious air to it that undermines just how camp and silly this could be. The performers are lovely, but never given anything to do that truly allows them to feel fun or over the top. 

Did I hate the show? No. There is plenty here to enjoy, but I'm frustrated with it because I wanted it to be more. More fun, more light hearted, more reason to justify why this is the best way to tell this story. 

Much like the movie it's based on, I'd say it's probably just a rental. 

Matti McLean is in Orlando Fringe with his show A CANADIAN EXPLAINS EUROVISION TO AMERICANS. 
The Eurovision song I'd recommend for fans of Sweet Home Alabama is the one that comes second to Conchita in 2014! The  Common Linnets and their song "Calm After The Storm"