A sea of black-and-white pinstripes accented with green filled the San Diego Civic Theatre on Feb. 26. Older guests held bright green cocktails, and fans of all ages donned the iconic look for the special occasion: \u201cBeetlejuice\u201d was in town.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Based on Tim Burton\u2019s atmospheric feature film of the same name, \u201cBeetlejuice\u201d the musical opened in 2019 and is currently on a national tour. Seeing this crowd transform the theater space told me I was not just attending a showing, but an interactive experience where the audience goes all out in support of our favorite dead guy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Filing into my seat, I looked up to the iconic \u201cBetelgeuse, Betelgeuse\u201d sign donning the curtains in homage to the film\u2019s \u201cnetherworld\u201d attic sign. As they opened, the story began.<\/p>\n
A young Lydia Deetz (Leianna Weaver) is grieving her recently deceased mother. Lydia navigates a changing family dynamic, a new home, and a world of ghosts only she can see, all while trying to bring a piece of her mother back. The cast\u2019s effortless onstage harmony eased the weight of an otherwise intense story about dealing with grief, loneliness, and dysfunction.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The stars of this show, Lydia and Beetlejuice (Ryan Stajmiger), are at the forefront of this chaos. Weaver, a San Diego native, perfectly embodied Lydia\u2019s teenage angst and rebellion, presenting a headstrong character determined to make her presence known, despite the neglect she faces from her father.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Stajmiger was equally incredible as Beetlejuice; his raspy singing that honored the original performer Alex Brightman. Weaver\u2019s higher melodic tones meshed well with Stajmiger\u2019s growls in songs like \u201cThat Beautiful Sound\u201d and \u201cSay My Name.\u201d Their onstage chemistry drove home the complexity of the relationships between their characters and the rest of the ensemble.<\/p>\n
Adam (David Wilson) and Barbara (Kaitlin Feely) \u2014 a painfully boring couple and the attic ghosts that once owned the Deetz home \u2014 were unexpected favorites. Their interactions were hilarious, particularly in tracks like \u201cBarbara 2.0\u201d and \u201cReady Set, Not Yet.\u201d As Adam and Barbara develop confidence, they effortlessly play off each other\u2019s energy and break free from the \u201cPottery Barn and dry white wine\u201d stereotype that Beetlejuice imparts on them. Despite the couple\u2019s sad backstory, the actors brought great comedic relief to the stage, balancing out the more serious themes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDead Mom\u201d was as much of a tearjerker on stage as it is in my headphones. Illustrating Lydia\u2019s turmoil over losing her mom and feeling abandoned by her father, the song is heavy and emotionally charged. Weaver expressed these fears and feelings with her impressive vocal prowess. Even through long runs, difficult belts, and sustained high notes, her voice remained steady \u2014 a difficult feat given the high tonality of her range. It was an impressive sight to see her claim the stage and make the track her own.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Equally impressive was fan-favorite \u201cSay My Name,\u201d which is performed by Beetlejuice, Lydia, Barbara, and Adam when Lydia and Beetlejuice first meet. The song is a turning point; Lydia decides to scare her new stepmom Delia away and ventures to bring her mother back from the dead. It\u2019s an iconic piece that showcases various character traits: Adam and Barbara\u2019s apprehension toward Beetlejuice, Lydia\u2019s initial excitement and subsequent wariness, and Beetlejuice\u2019s confidence.<\/p>\n
By far, my favorite aspect of the show was the set design. The Deetz\u2019s family home transforms physically from Adam and Barbara\u2019s forever home, to Charles Deetz\u2019s modern renovation, and then to Beetlejuice and Lydia\u2019s pinstripe chaos. The set changes not only represent the passage of time, but also exemplify the transformations Lydia experiences in her journey of self-acceptance and discovery. Her initial grunginess transitions into a perfect-daughter facade, which then becomes her chaotic and rebellious self with Beetlejuice by her side. As she learns to accept her circumstances and find solace in her father again, Lydia and the home return to their starting points.<\/p>\n
My one critique of the show is the explicitness of some of the jokes and innuendos. Broadway recommends viewers of \u201cBeetlejuice\u201d to be at least 13 years old, but there were many kids\u00a0 younger than that in the audience. Many lines were directly sexual or strongly suggestive, accompanied by numerous political and self-deprecating jokes. Though not unexpected, I was uncomfortable knowing young children were hearing it too, and I felt the tension linger.<\/p>\n
For anyone who is a fan of the original movie, I would recommend giving the musical a chance. While there are some subtle differences in plotline, it successfully encapsulates the comedy, grief, and adolescent uncertainty reminiscent of the film. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A sea of black-and-white pinstripes accented with green filled the San Diego Civic Theatre on Feb. 26. Older…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":252129,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[95968,111985,74,76,75],"class_list":{"0":"post-252128","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-diego","8":"tag-beetlejuice","9":"tag-musical-review","10":"tag-san-diego","11":"tag-san-diego-headlines","12":"tag-san-diego-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/252128","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=252128"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/252128\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/252129"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=252128"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=252128"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=252128"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}