CONNECTCOMMENTEMAILMORE
MANSFIELD – If you’re of a certain era, you won’t be able to resist the music of “Rock of Ages.”
Described as Broadway’s best party, the show was nominated for five Tony Awards, including best musical. It features a blend of music, everything from classic rock songs by Styx and Journey to hair metal gems from Poison and Whitesnake.
The play became a 2012 movie with Tom Cruise.
A largely local cast from the Renaissance Theatre will tackle the material the next two weekends. Michael Thomas is the director.
“People can expect to have a rip-roaring good time,” Scott Smith said.
Smith plays Stacee Jaxx, a rock star on the Sunset Strip. Cruise played the character in the film version.
“He is just a tool,” Smith said of Jaxx. “It’s all gone to his head. He’s decided to leave his band, and they all hate his guts.”
Smith teaches theater and English at North Central State College. He is doing his third show at the Renaissance.
“I didn’t audition for it initially,” Smith said. “I live in Bucyrus and was worried about the weather.”
He’s glad he did.
“This is my era,” Smith said. “I came up in the ’80s and early ’90s. I made a playlist and discovered I still enjoy these songs.”
Smith’s character takes on “Wanted Dead or Alive” by Bon Jovi and “I Want to Know What Love Is” by Foreigner, among others.
The plot of “Rock of Ages” underscores a tale of big dreams in Hollywood. Soon after hopping off a bus from the Midwest, aspiring singer Sherrie Christian, played by Matti-Lynn Chrisman, immediately finds herself in trouble.
Coming to her rescue is Drew, a bar-back played by Ryan Shreve at the legendary club the Bourbon Room. With stars in their eyes, the young lovers chase their dreams, but a misunderstanding involving rock god Stacee Jaxx threatens to tear them apart.
Shreve and Chrisman have become regulars at the Renaissance. Chrisman, of course, was Miss Ohio a couple of years ago.
“It’s hard to find people who are this good at sound, this good at lighting, this good at costumes,” she said of the reason she keeps coming back.
Chrisman handles the choreography for “Rock of Ages,” which features a live band. Her father and her brother will be two of the musicians.
“I grew up rocking to this music,” she said. “People can expect a lot of energy, a lot of fun, a lot of really good jokes.”
Shreve said patrons will really enjoy hearing a live band. His character, Drew, came to Hollywood to be a rock star.
“He falls in love. Things get complicated,” Shreve said.
Though he is far too young, Shreve said he grew up on a lot of the songs featured in “Rock of Ages.”
“I love rock,” he said.
He belts out a number of tunes, including “Heaven” by Warrant, “Here I Go Again” by Whitesnake and “I Wanna Rock” by Twisted Sister.
Do you feel the nostalgia yet?
Many of the musical’s characters hang out at the famed Bourbon Room, owned by Dennis, who is being played by Renaissance regular Colton Penwell.
Penwell clomped down the aisle toward a reporter in a pair of massive platform shoes.
“They’re by far the most comfortable shoes I’ve ever put on,” he deadpanned.
Dennis sports a fringe vest and a garish wig that make him look like a roadie for Lynyrd Skynyrd. He said he was surprised by the script.
“It was much funnier than I thought it was going to be,” Penwell said.
Of course, the music will be the highlight.
“I love it. It’s so much fun,” Penwell said. “Everyone’s going to know the music and sing along. It’s an absolute blast.”
The Bourbon Room and the rest of the Sunset Strip are in trouble in “Rock of Ages.” Developer Hertz, played by Beau Roberts, is a real estate developer who wants to tear down the Strip.
“He’s the villain of the story,” Roberts said. “He’s conniving, for sure. He’s got a lot of money.”
The veteran actor said he often ends up playing the villain, a chance he relishes. Roberts said he has grown to love the songs in the play even more.
“This past week alone, I’ve heard at least four of the songs from the show, and I don’t even listen to the radio,” he said.
While most of the actors in “Rock of Ages” are local, Aaron Wiessing is making the trip from Columbus for rehearsals. He calls himself a projects manager by day who does theater on the side.
Wiessing said he was cast at the last minute but didn’t miss any rehearsals. Overall, it’s his seventh show since 2018.
He plays Lonny, the narrator who helps run the Bourbon Room. He calls Lonny a “lovable goofball.”
“I get to break the fourth wall a lot,” Wiessing said.
As for the aforementioned band, called the RENegades, Kelly Knowlton is the musical director. She also plays keyboards on such iconic parts as the beginnings of “Don’t Stop Believin’ ” and “The Final Countdown.”
“It is going to bring some serious energy,” Knowlton said of the band. “I’m blown away by the talent of the musicians.”
She said pulling double duty “means that I have a lot more homework to do from the show.”
Not quite everyone in the cast can relate to the music. Leiah Lewis plays Justice, the owner of another nightclub.
“This is more my parents’ era,” she said. “I’m only 21.”
Lewis played the same character in the Players Guild Theatre last summer in Canton.
“A few Ren people came to the show,” she said. “They suggested I come see their version of the show.”
mcaudill@gannett.com
419-521-7219
Twitter: @MNJCaudill
What: “Rock of Ages”
Where: Renaissance Theatre, 138 Park Avenue West
When: 8 p.m. March 7 and 14, 2:30 p.m. March 8 and 15.
Tickets: $15 to $37
More information: Visit rentickets.org or call 419-522-2726.
CONNECTCOMMENTEMAILMORE
Read or Share this story: https://www.mansfieldnewsjournal.com/story/news/2020/03/03/rock-of-ages-renaissance-theatre-music-styx-journey-poison-whitesnake-matti-lynn-chrisman/4927690002/