Review Date
Nov 20, 2001

It was my great pleasure to be able to attend the Reprise Production of The Most Happy Fella at the Freud Playhouse featuring Kevin Earley on November 16-18, 2001. Kevin played the role of Herman, a happy-go-lucky guy who through the course of the play discovers a great deal about life, love, and loyalty. Herman's love interest in the play, Chloe, is played by Jennifer Leigh Warren, and the two of them shared not only fabulous vocals, but also an amazing amount of chemistry on stage.

This show is most definitely a musical comedy and, in my opinion, Herman and Chloe have the best songs to showcase that with numbers such as" I Like Everybody," "I Made A Fist," and "Big D." Kevin and Jennifer shared an ability to belt out these comedic numbers while showing the audience that while their character's friendship may have begun as a result of sharing the same roots, love between these two blossomed.

While I really enjoyed Kevin's performance, this particular production was not one that had numbers that specifically showcased his vocal talents, although it did provide an opportunity to see him in a comedic role and to see Kevin for the versatile performer he is.

If the mark of a truly gifted performer is the ability to convincingly portray a wide range of characters, then I must say, Kevin Earley is a truly remarkable actor. A TOTAL 360 degree turn from his previous role as the conservative, antagonist Edward Rutledge in 1776, Kevin handled the comedic role of lovable ranch hand Herman with great ease.

Although the role didn't allow Kevin to showcase his awesome voice enough for my taste, it was a great role to see how versatile he could be and to showcase his... (gasp) dancing talents as well. Among the myriad of talents that I've seen that Kevin possesses, I can now add dancing to the list :o).

As the amiable, happy-go-lucky Herman, Kevin was rather endearing in the role and again the thing I loved the most about his performance was that from the moment he stepped on stage he WAS Herman. I don't think I've ever seen Kevin smile as much as I'd seen him in this role. I appreciated the little things he added to bring out Herman's lovable nature. For example, it was almost hilarious to see the look of utter confusion on his face when George Ball's Tony blurted out a bunch of things in Italian after Rosabella almost fainted and he was extremely cute during "Big D" when Cleo sang, "...the way you drawl and the way you dress..." and Kevin smiled and pointed proudly at his big cowboy belt buckle in Sunday's two shows.

Not the striking, flooring type of performance he gave in 1776, the music in "The Most Happy Fella" was more upbeat and highlighted his acting more than his singing. However, I wouldn't be able to write a Kevin review without at least mentioning his voice. Although he was great in "Standing on the Corner" with the rest of the ensemble, he was particularly endearing matched up with Jennifer Leigh Warren's Cleo. And when he sang my favorite song of the production, "Big D" complete with yelps, Texas cowboy hollers, and a southern crack in his voice, I was in heaven. There were also certain numbers where his familiar, magnificent voice could clearly be heard from the rest of the ensemble. For example, in "Sposalizio", no matter where in the theatre I was sitting, I could hear traces of his beautiful baritone singing "...and the vino flowing..."

We saw the production a total of 5 times the weekend we were there. True, I would've much rather heard him try to tackle "Joey, Joey, Joey", but Herman was a cute role and I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to see Kevin showcase his comedic talents.

Review Date
Nov 20, 2001

Show Dates
Nov 16-18, 2001