Entertainment

<< Previous   of   Next >> Jay Koh photo for Village Theatre  (click to enlarge) Michael K. Lee and Beth DeVries star in "The King & I."   ADVERTISEMENT   Review "The King and I": Shows at 8 p.m. Wednesdays through Fridays, and 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays, Everett Performing Arts Center, 2710 Wetmore Ave., Everett. $15 to $49, 425-257-8600, www.villagetheatre.org.   CONTACT THE HERALD Melanie Munk, Features Editor munk@heraldnet.com   Published: Friday, January 18, 2008 'The King & I' is lovely, from beginning to end By Theresa Goffredo Herald writer The Village Theatre's production of "The King and I" is exotic, stunning and sizzling, a love story and a clash of cultures, a classic, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. And yes we could go so forth and so on, but suffice it to say you'll want to see "The King and I" because it's lovely from beginning to end. The show runs Wednesdays through Saturdays with weekend matinees at the Everett Performing Arts Center, 2710 Wetmore Ave. And not to put too fine a point on it, but the loveliness of this production touched all aspects, from the costumes created from yards of fabric that traveled from the fashion capitol of New York City (costume designer Melanie Burgess) to the towering sets drenched in exotic colors (scenic designer Bob Dahlstrom). And let's not forget the cast. The handsome king, his beautiful wives and precious children and the stunning school teacher. Watching all of this was like picking through a basket of passion fruit. The loveliness itself is just one of the aspects that makes this production such a success. There's unrequited love, subtle humor ("In foreign countries, it's best you like everyone until you leave"), one of the most amazing ballet sequences in musical theater (directed and choreographed by Steve Tomkins and Kathryn Van Meter) and some of the prettiest music heard on stage (musical direction by Bruce Monroe) that was backed up by an 18-piece live orchestra -- one of the largest the Village Theatre has ever employed. All this takes place against the backdrop of Bangkok where the King of Siam -- though a stubborn monarch in many ways, he has embraced Western culture and is eager to sample its offerings -- has commissioned a British school teacher to govern his many children. The king is played with wit, charm and royal sophistication by Broadway veteran Michael K. Lee. Lee was last seen as Tommy in Villge's "The Who's Tommy." Lee had commented to The Herald that Village Theatre does gutsy stuff like casting an Asian American as Tommy and did something similar here casting Lee, a youngster at 34, as the venerable King of Siam. That was gutsy and maybe a little genius because the King here is youthful in his pursuit of change. That youthfulness brought a real humor and humanness as the king and teacher connected, their bond growing deeper. Lee played the king as vulnerable because with change, there is often sacrifice: "I am a king. There is no barbarian worse than a weak king." Lee did here what fine actors do: He charmed us, made us laugh and moved us. The school teacher, the slave Tuptim and the King's head wife, Lady Thiang, gave us the trifecta of towering voices. What powerhouses. The three were played respectively by Beth DeVries, Jennifer Paz and Kim Varhola. Besides this solid set of actors, there's a whole different set of masterful dancers who come on to perform the ballet sequence "Small House of Uncle Thomas." This Siamese ballet, acrobatics included, is just jaw-dropping and you'll find yourself watching spellbound. Reporter Theresa Goffredo: 425-339-3424 or goffredo@heraldnet.com

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