Exactly a century ago this year, a trifle of a musical called No, No, Nanette arrived on Broadway and was acclaimed by audiences and critics alike, neither of which apparently wanted anything more than an excuse for some upbeat, hummable songs and captivating dance numbers.
Fast forward to 1971, when the show had its cobwebs wiped away and its still-flimsy script somewhat bolstered, as an improbable revival of No, No, Nanette was greeted with near unanimous choruses of “yes, yes.”
Still another 54 years later comes The Wick Theatre to mount the show in what now seems an act of pure nostalgia and unabashed chutzpah. But as long as you are able to accept it as an artifact from a simpler time — theatrically speaking — there is plenty of entertainment value to be had in this daffy romp.
Just don’t go looking for a story in which to become too involved or emotionally invested. Instead, book writers Otto Harbach and Frank Mandel (with an adaptation assist from Burt Shevelove) serve up a silly comic tale about a wealthy Bible publisher named Jimmy Smith, who bankrolls a trio of alluring dames — platonically, we are assured — and transports them to Atlantic City, where his wife, her best friend, his fixer lawyer and his eager-to-sow-wild-oats niece, Nanette, all show up as well. Of course, comic chaos, circa 1920s, ensues.
The show has plenty of plot, but the story’s main purpose is to lead into the songs by composer Vincent Youmans and co-lyricists Irving Caesar and Harbach. Chief among them is the now Great American Songbook classic “Tea for Two” and the infectious, bouncy “I Want to Be Happy.” The latter is reprised so often — including an audience participation sing-along during the curtain calls — that the tune becomes an earworm that will rattle around in your brain for the rest of the evening.
As was the custom back when labor was cheap, many of the musical numbers begin as solos or duets among the principal performers and then they are joined by the generic ensemble chorus that also functions as fashion plates for the snazzy period costumes credited to designer Ann M. Bruskiewitz.
No, No, Nanette is a dance-heavy show, with lots of explosive tap choreography by Broadway’s Randy Skinner, recreated and adapted at the Wick by the tireless Jeremy Benton, who also plays Jimmy’s attorney, Billy Early. He heads one of the more talented casts that the Boca Raton company has amassed in its 11 seasons of existence. Staging them is the ever-reliable Norb Joerder, directing what us his 20th production at the Wick, wringing every laugh from the punchline-shameless script.
Elizabeth McGuire is a cast standout as spunky ingenue Nanette, well paired with Kevin Hincapie as Tom Trainor, Billy’s lawyer assistant and all-around go-fer. Kaitlyn Davidson and Kathryn Kendall lend solid support as the two shopaholic wives and Ellie Pattison is drolly deadpan as Pauline, the put-upon maid.
Originally written in three acts, the show is performed at the Wick with only one intermission. Among the evening’s more curious touches is a pause in the action after the second act, when we are treated to a slide show of photos from this cast’s rehearsals that covers the required set change.
The three-act format is one of many ways that No, No, Nanette is showing its age, but audiences with an appreciation for theater history and a willing funny bone will likely be charmed by this exercise in exhumation.
NO, NO, NANETTE, The Wick Theatre, 7901 N. Federal Highway, Boca Raton. Through Sunday, April 6. $99-$119. 561-995-2333 or visit thewick.org.