Flux Theatre Ensemble

Michael Davis in Flux's Life is a Dream

I know Associate Member Michael Davis as a fine actor and a wonderful friend, but tonight I had the chance to see him as a director for the new musical comedy Chuck and Ginger Babcock are Thawed for Your Pleasure. The evening features a "famous" duet team (the aforementioned Chuck and Ginger) who were cryogenically frozen in the '60's as part of a sponsored publicity stunt experiment by "Lucky Stiff" Cigarettes. With the advent of cancer and the decline of the cigarette industry, the duet had to be unfrozen prematurely (due to lack of funding) and now, once again, they grace the stage to bring us the songs of the "Rat Pack" era.

This little gem of a musical is a lovely valentine to the gorgeous standards of yester-year---and yet these two performers (Michael Leedy and Melissa Cruz) bring an honest and immediate voice to these tunes. They proceed to tell us the history of their meeting, marriage and hardships, all through these wonderful songs. And the musical direction and composition of Aya Kato (who also plays Chie, the piano player) is something jazz fans don't want to miss--she is hilarious and wonderful!

As for Mike D, I had no idea he was a man of this many talents! The direction is almost effortless, as the singing duo move comically from one hit to the next--all while hitting every note. The pace is fun and fast and the timing is sharp and right on the spot. The show only runs two more nights: Saturday, April 12 at 10pm and Sunday, April 13 at 8pm at the Sage Theatre in Midtown, so hurry fast, before this little play goes back to the freezer!