Theatre review: Seventies-era touches bring high-spirited glam to Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
With its flared costumes and feisty performances, Metro Theatre’s production of a Rice and Lloyd Webber favourite offers a quirkily fun tour of musical genres
Argel Monte de Ramos and the cast of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Photo by Harika
Metro Theatre presents Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat to June 8
JOSEPH AND THE Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, one of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s best-known rock musicals, is back in Vancouver—and Metro Theatre’s version has some fresh hues.
Director Christopher King has enacted a creative 1970s TV variety-show framing device, and through this, the unapologetically quirky, over-the-top production looks and sounds fantastic, with all the silliness that the musical is beloved for.
At the start, we see Iva (Ivania Delgado) welcome celebrity guest Joseph (Argel Monte de Ramos) onto her variety show. Joseph shares his story—one that viewers may remember from the Bible’s book of Genesis. A crew of singers and dancers fill out the sound stage to play characters such as Joseph’s brothers and father as the story travels through ancient Canaan and Egypt. Iva serves as the narrator, recounting the story of Joseph’s jealous brothers selling him into slavery, and the fateful events that followed. There’s even a special performance by the Pharaoh, who resembles a certain iconic music superstar.
The poised Delgado offers crystal-clear, soaring vocals throughout the show, while always looking like a dream in costume designer Erin Gravelle’s 1970s glam outfits, including some inventive onstage costume reveals. Rising music star de Ramos blends pop style with legit musical theatre vocals to beautifully deliver several Lloyd Webber and Rice classics, such as “Close Every Door” and “Any Dream Will Do”.
With his larger-than-life personality, pelvic thrusts, and “King of Rock ’n’ Roll” persona, Matt Ramer is a standout as Pharaoh. Ramer’s “Song of the King” is a highlight, boosted by Shelley Stewart Hunt’s lively choreography, delivered with energy and cheekiness by the cast.
In fact, Hunt’s choreography is integral to making this show the entertaining ride that it is, leaning in to Joseph’s playful take on music genre–flavoured numbers, including the country-themed “One More Angel in Heaven” and the French-themed “Those Canaan Days”—both delivered by a fully committed cast. The Potiphar sequence takes on a Sweet Charity theme, with the cast costumed in black, sparkly dresses and distinct “Rich Man’s Frug” inspiration.
Dance captain and assistant choreographer Hailey Fowler, along with Danica Domay and Christine Santa Maria, live up to the name of their roles—the Fabulous Dancer Singers—offering feisty performances, including hilarious moments such as their personification of a camel. As Joseph’s youngest brother, Benjamin, Raphael Tolentino also serves up fun, especially in some sassy dance moves in “Benjamin Calypso”.
Thanks to the overarching TV variety-show theme, there’s no expectation here of Ancient Egyptian–style scenery and costumes—instead, we get a simple sound stage with a movable platform that offers ample space for movement and reconfiguration when needed, as well as Gravelle MSM’s array of 70s-flared costumes. There’s a lightness about all of this that brings out the show’s fun qualities, while delivering some moving messages. In short: this disco-charged production of Joseph is blast. 
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