FRINGE: Standby--The Musical

I tend to choose Fringe shows based on the titles. I was drawn to Standby because I've spent a lot of time in airports waiting on standby and I thought it would be a musical comedy about that experience (musicals have been written about stranger things). It turns out Standby is a very serious musical in which (and I don't think this is a spoiler because it is revealed very early on in the show) the travelers have all committed suicide and are waiting to see if they can get on a flight to heaven (or somewhere else). Basically, it's a cross between the film Wristcutters: A Love Story and the musical Happiness (in that case the dead passengers were on a subway car).

From left: Seth Blum, Jillian Gottlieb, Matthew Corr,
Ashley Picciallo, and Mike Backes
Photo credit: Brian Camarao

It is admirable that the creative team (Keith Robinson and Amy Baer wrote the music and Alfred Solis and Mark-Eugene Garcia wrote the book and lyrics) have tackled such an ambitious subject matter. Unfortunately, the results are unoriginal and predictable. But the potential for this musical comes through in a solid pop rock score and convincing performances all around. Jillian Gottlieb as Samantha, who lost her family in a car crash, and Matthw Corr as Andrew, who worked in a wedding dress shop and feared no one would ever love him, were particularly moving. Michael-Anthony Souza as Peter is a vocal standout, picking up the energy up in his two rousing numbers.

Remaining performances: Wednesday, August 22 at 5 p.m. and Thursday, August 23 at 7 p.m. at the Players Theatre