Something Rotten! — produced in Solvang by PCPA — is a ridiculous musical about the ridiculousness of musicals. It’s a clever comedy brimming with references and loving homages to the English-speaking theatrical universe. The emphasis is on the canon of the American Broadway tradition, complete with kick lines and full-company dance numbers, and costumes that range from glitzy showgirl to, well, omelets.
The show pits Nick (Cordell Cole) and Nigel (Alexander Pimentel) Bottom, theater artists in renaissance-era London, against the biggest talent of the era: Shakespeare. Desperately searching for the “next big thing” in theater, Nick hires a knock-off Nostradamus (Erik Stein) to pluck a radical idea from the future of the artform. The wacky soothsayer introduces the Bottoms to the idea of a mid-century-style classic Broadway musical, but they still need a story. The kooky clairvoyant searches through the fog for whatever will be Shakespeare’s most influential play, and gets, as he says, “so close!” Omelet: The Musical is born, and the Bottom brothers work toward their breakfast-themed blockbuster.
PCPA’s musical productions are consistently high-quality, and Something Rotten! (directed by Roger DeLaurier) is no exception. Pimentel and Cole as Nigel and Nick give inspired performances as the delicate poet and the hungry theater producer looking for a hit. Stein is comical as the would-be old hippy fortune-teller, and George Walker is perfectly cast as sleazy, rock-star Shakespeare in a hilarious skewering of the Bard.
The show gleefully pokes fun at the spectacle of musical theatre while creating a spectacle all its own — but the comedy is light and joyful, a true act of love for the form. The show is a treat for musical lovers catching the references and easter eggs, but fun for any kind of audience.
See the show under the stars at Solvang Festival Theater through August 23. Click here for tickets and more information.
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