Stranger Sings! What a Riot!

Last Friday I went to Opening Night of the absolutely hysterical Stranger Sings presented by DarkStage Productions at the Backstage Theatre. It is what is sounds like it might be, a musical parody of the Netflix show Stranger Things. Like the TV show, it is set in Hawkins, Indiana, where four nerdy tweens play D&D and one of them (Will Byers - a puppet voiced by Melenie Reid, who also plays his mom, Joyce Byers) goes missing on his way home! All the folks you expect to see are there: D&D buddies Mike (Jeremey Zimmerman), Lucas (Jason Wong) and Dustin (Renell Doneza - who does an amazing imitation of Gaten Matarazzo), Steve Harrington with the hair (played by Brian Christenson who also plays Jonathon Byers with a quick switch of a wig and a moor slouch), Nancy Wheeler (Liz Janzen) and best-friend but forgotten Barb (Carly Pettit), Eleven (Jack Hunting), Hooper (Connor Foy) and, of course, the Demogorgon (the clearly never-shy in his life - Lucas Paterson). I mention them all because they are such a fabulous ensemble. No one is weak in this bunch. They all sing terrifically and embrace the camp of the show and handle the fun choreography (Director/Choreographer David Son) expertly! 

I loved this show because I loved Stranger Things. It doesn't recreate the entire show, but it hits the moments and highlights the ridiculousness of the situations. All the cast members clearly understood the assignment - it's obvious they've watched the show and know the mannerisms of their characters and they go for it. Melenie Reid's Winona Ryder as Joyce Byers is simply hysterical, and Carly Pettit is a bang-on Barb. Jack Hunting has Eleven's physicality down to an art. 

I also loved this show because it's a musical theatre fan's treasure hunt! The songs are fun and there's homage to many musical styles. I heard references from Yentl, Dear Evan Hansen, The Muppet Movie and Gypsy! to name just a few! Every single cast member was giving it 100% whether in a solo or an ensemble piece. There were times where they were all singing and it was so fabulous to hear! What a great sound. 

It helps to have seen the show, I would think. My friend even went so far as to binge the first season before going and I think she felt that was a good idea. But if you are a fan of the show, you will not be disappointed. If you haven't seen it, it's not too late to binge and then check out this delightful parody!

Tickets for Stranger Sings are $37.00 and can be purchased here. They have already Sold Out a few performances so buy sooner rather than later. They run to October 26th!


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