Omigod you guys, can there be a more athletically exuberant musical than dance-driven “Legally Blonde: The Musical,” the hot-pink confection bouncing all over the La Mirada Theatre stage these next few weeks?
The hyper-energized, musicalized transformation of the 2001 Reese Witherspoon movie about contemporary girlhood has largely vanished from professional stages in Southern California for the past 15 years.
Walk out of this crisply directed and choreographed rejuvenation and you wonder why touring versions haven’t been plastering smiles on everyone’s faces at the Pantages, Ahmanson or Segerstrom Center for, well, like, evah.
No matter. In this well-produced, home-grown production the curtain rises on a two-level sorority building at UCLA. Pink dominates the view, starting with scenery channeling the look and spirit of a Barbie Dreamhouse.
The place is in coed tizzy. Resident fashionista/platinum blonde Elle Woods is about to get engaged and a multitude of Delta Nu sisters — the pack includes Bruiser, Elle’s adorable handbag-size pet Chihuahua and live musical theater’s second most famous canine — are in frantic anticipation.
Instead, Elle gets dumped and to win back the man who may not be worth having, she’ll need to prove herself by getting into Harvard Law School.
A key theme of the show emerges during the initial and extended, sugar-rush pop number “Omigod You Guys.”
An evil clothing saleswoman — “blondes make commissions SO easy” — swoops in on Elle, showing her a dress with the sales tag ripped off: “Excuse me, have you seen this? It just came in; it’s perfect for a blonde.”
Elle retorts “It may be perfect for a blonde, but I’m not that blonde.” Then she sings, “I may be in love, but I’m not stupid…”
The story follows definitely-not-stupid Elle from West Coast to East Coast, and what emerges is the process of personal growth and self-discovery that braininess can be her — and any other girl’s — defining trait and saving grace no matter hair color.
Post-pandemic, La Mirada has made a habit of rolling out high-caliber, light-hearted efforts with routine panache and this mounting of “Legally Blonde: The Musical” stays on point.
Jerry Mitchell’s original direction and choreography have been more than ably built upon here by Cynthia Ferrer and Dana Solimando, respectively.
Ferrer is confidently at home with Laurence O’Keefe and Nell Benjamin’s snappy pop score. From the unlikeness of a Greek chorus — amusingly drawn from the sorority — to the smallest jaunty silliness built into one-dimensional characters, the quick-paced scenes are well developed and impactfully staged.
Solimando’s arrangements of the kinetic dance numbers are also sharply shaped. There’s a staggering range of styles satisfyingly on display: the unlikely manifestation of a cheerleading routine; an all-male hip hop element; a notably visceral jump-rope/exercise workout video homage; and an amusing, gently mocking Irish step dance.
With a big cast to fill, the successes here started early with elevated regional casting making up a 40+ person phalanx of largely actors’ equity talent.
Elle is described by a chum as a “genetic lotto win,” and that captures Kathryn Brunner’s skill at inhabiting the lead. With quirky peppiness built into the role’s DNA, and beyond leaning into the character’s thrust-jaw determination, Brunner projects friendliness into empathy and not just with allies but sometimes her rivals, too.
Plus — and a potentially show-sinking issue if this isn’t in place — Brunner is an actress who is also a good singer. Keep an ear open in the second act where she leads or is a major part of seven straight numbers. Vocal stamina is required, Brunner never flags.
Supplemental performances of note include Anthea Neri-Best as Paulette, Elle’s gal pal salon worker (love is “the number one reason for bad hair decisions”).
Paulette’s own roughhewn, lovelorn travails provide the show’s sub-plot and Neri-Best winningly leans into her vocals in the unexpected, clever ballad “Ireland.”
The acrobatic peak of the show’s indefatigable performances arrives at the beginning of Act 2 with the introduction of wrongly incarcerated (Elle as fledgling lawyer/fellow Delta Nu sister to the rescue!) fitness video queen Brooke Wyndham.
As Brooke, the ultra-fit Jane Papageorge’s astonishing ability to jump rope, belt a song and power the dance ensemble — as well as freeze a daunting pose or two — through the workout anthem “Whipped into Shape” is not soon forgotten.
A performance at a different pace is the smooth and mock refinement served up by Edward Staudenmayer as the avuncular — and predatory — Professor Callahan.
Staudenmayer looks, sounds and winningly conveys the edge underlying his oh-so-suave exterior in the self-explanatory tune “Blood in the Water.”
Supporting elements for this production are well in place, too.
Adam Ramirez’s costumes range from muted green and brown for the Harvard crowd to surprising variations of pink sub-tones for Elle. Ann E. McMills’ lighting shows off everything splendidly. Nice, discreet framing is found in Jonathan Infante’s subtle projection designs.
Stepping back from the overall cheerleading here a bit, the show’s script can be bit of a mess as events proceed. The writing late in the second act — beginning with the extended chunks of the “Legally Blonde Remix” number — is a hurried jumble.
Opening night also saw a couple of miscues: one character mistimed a vocal entrance and there were a couple of detectable wording stumbles.
Bruiser, played by Little Ricky, notably has four separate lines of dialogue — the script describes them as “yaps” — but hit just three on cue. Perhaps food-treat payment in the moment not up to snuff for the pooch’s liking?
At this point the giddiness of the production has carried things along so effectively that none of these kvetchings detract from the show’s considerable bring it on impact.
‘Legally Blonde: The Musical’
Rating: 3 1/2 stars (of a possible 4)
Where: La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts. 14900 La Mirada Blvd., La Mirada
When: Through May 18. 7:30 p.m. Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays, 1:30 and 6:30 p.m. Sundays
Tickets: $25-$95
Information: 714-994-6310, 562-944-9801; lamiradatheatre.com
