As expected, Broadway Theatre project performers shine

TAMPA — Very early, one suspected that this year's Broadway Theatre Project showcase might not meet the lofty standards of past years.

The best of the next generation of musical theater performers come to Tampa every year for the prestigious three-week program. Among their teachers this year were Broadway stars Ben Vereen, Terrence Mann and Patrick Wilson and Jekyll & Hyde composer Frank Wildhorn.

So who from this illustrious faculty gave the curtain speech?

Kathie Lee Gifford.

Regis Philbin's former sidekick is writing a musical called Key Pin It Real, and she came to BTP to work on some numbers with the students.

She gushed about how talented the kids were, and she was absolutely right. The kids — mostly in their late teens to maybe early 20s — were, almost without exception, phenomenal.

Soloists wielded gorgeous voices, dancers showed poise and polish, actors demonstrated impressive comic timing.

Perhaps most impressive was that virtually all the six dozen or so young performers, even those in large ensemble numbers, had striking confidence and charisma.

People who attend the Broadway Theatre Project showcases have come to expect that level of talent and skill. The showcases are always among the most energetic and enjoyable stage productions of the year in this area.

Saturday's show — which included everything from classic Monty Python bits to familiar Broadway show-stoppers and a stirring ensemble rendition of Foreigner's I Want to Know What Love Is — was good, and occasionally great, but not quite as impressive as usual.

The problem was the material. The show was well over 21/2 hours long, and at least a half-hour was less then enthralling. Most disappointing were Wildhorn's Every Street Tells a Story, a Burt Bacharach medley and a piece that immediately followed built around John Lennon's Imagine and the Beatles' Because.

But there were just as many high points, including a dance piece built on Youssou N'Dour's Li Ma Wesu, a really fun staging of Mame and the Foreigner finale.

Weaknesses would have been forgivable anyway. The point was to give these performers a chance to work and show off their skills in a variety of disciplines and styles. Even in the lesser numbers, the show challenged them and they surpassed any reasonable expectation, and the performances were a joy to watch.