Nov. 21--Cindy Lou Who'd believe it? The Grinch got his union card! I don't mean that Shuler Hensley, who plays the verdant old meanie on the road, is the newest member of Actors' Equity Association. Au contraire. Hensley has more Broadway credits than the Whos have Roast Beast, including a Tony Award-winning performance as Jud Fry in "Oklahoma" (that one lives with me still) and a hilarious turn as the monster in "Young Frankenstein."
Nobody could screech "Puttin' On the Ritz" quite like Hensley. Well, that monster was a perfect appetizer for playing the destroyer of Christmas, and Hensley has all kinds of fun with this latest Nixonian assignment, crawling down chimneys, barking at children and the misanthropic rest. Hensley is an unstinting but big-hearted performer and, therefore, the requisite rapprochement with the unimpeachable Cindy Lou is all you could ask.
But the last time "Dr. Seuss' How The Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical" was in town, it was a non-Equity show. This time, those are experienced Broadway thespians making an honest living as the Whos behind those crazy deformed costumes. It's a particular pleasure to see the likes of Rosemary Loar and Stuart Zagnit, veterans of many a tour, doing their classy thing as grandparent Whos of Whoville, and, taken as a community, the Whos now warble with class.
I mean, it ain't Stephen Sondheim, but "Welcome Christmas" is cheery enough.
Even Max the Dog, played now by Ken Land, has a certain gravitas. Normally, shows on reprise engagements get worse as they go. Although it is the same physical production as the one that played the Cadillac Palace Theatre in 2012, "The Grinch" has improved. Markedly so.
This show, originally directed by Jack O'Brien on Broadway and now restaged by Matt August, is reliant, of course, on one not-so-enormous Dr. Seuss text. Even at 90 minutes -- long enough for plenty of the kids around me -- that's a bit of a stretch as musical, which was a problem on Broadway, along with the trippy quality of some of these visuals.
But the short running time and the early curtains mean that young fans of Cindy Lou (well-played by Lilyana Cornell) can be to bed not too late, and their parents can be home with an adult beverage instead of fending off demands for intermission concessions.
Both pluses in the annals of holiday fare.
Be aware that the Chicago Theatre is, of course, a huge venue, so you may not see the greens of the Grinch's eyes, but Hensley sells his grump to the cheap seats, nonetheless.
The house staff of a venue where security is always the big worry could maybe dial back the bag searches and the wanding; this audience is not a big threat. Management might open a couple more doors (it's cold in that outer lobby) and wish the kiddos large and small a Merry Christmas, and to all a good, short, well-executed night.
cjones5@tribune.com
Twitter @ChrisJonesTrib
3 STARS
When: Through Nov. 29
Where: Chicago Theatre, 175 N. State St.
Running time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Tickets: $35-$125 at 800-745-3000
or thechicagotheatre.com/thegrinch
