Utah Theatre Bloggers Association’s Elizabeth Hansen Says Production Is “Wonderful and Worth It.”
The musical [“She Loves Me”] is based upon the 1937 play “Parfumerie” by Hungarian playwright Miklós László, and the plot revolves around Budapest shop employees Georg and Amalia, who, despite being consistently at odds with each other at work, are unaware that each is the other’s secret pen pal met through a lonely-hearts ad. What you also need to know about “She Loves Me" is that the music is written by Jerry Bock and the lyrics are by Sheldon Harnick, composer and lyricist of an obscure little musical called, “Fiddler on the Roof.” So the songs are delightful, lyrical, and glorious.
The production at BYU glows with charm. The great thing about seeing university theatre is basking in the infectious joy and enthusiasm emitting from the stage. The actors are having the BEST time and we, in turn, have the best time with them.
It’s a talented cast led by Austin Zimmerman as Georg Nowack and Elena Shill as Amalia Balash. These two actors play off each other so easily and with such honesty, it’s a joy to watch them fall in love. Zimmerman is an affable and amiable Georg, with a pleasant voice and great comic timing. Watching him weave in and out of all the shop character relationships is engaging and entertaining. Shill is a perfect Amalia, whose timing and tone is ideal for the character. Her almost “screwball” comic timing is adorable and enchanting. She has a lovely voice that lends itself well to Bock’s music. The music written for Amalia is legit and hard…and high, but Shill tackles it well, and though her voice is young, she has a strong, lyrical “set of pipes” and her voice will, soon, shatter glass.
BYU’s production of She Loves Me is wonderful and worth it.
Read the full Utah Theatre Bloggers Association review by Elizabeth Hansen here.