A secret’s no fun unless you tell somebody! So we’re gonna tell the world of the DMV that Frederick’s best kept secret is a little-known professional company slowly bursting its way back onto the scene with a semi-revival of a sold-out hit show from before the pandemic! Free Range Humans, roosting in Baker Park’s Bandshell for this show, is proudly producing Always, Patsy Cline, a light-hearted, feel-good musical to welcome audiences back to live theatre after what feels like an eternity away from the stage. Directed by Elizabeth Lucas with Musical Direction by Marci Shegogue, this two-person jukebox musical gives you more than just the popular song book of Patsy Cline, it gives you an encouraging and hopeful tale of camaraderie and friendship— just what everyone needs after more than a year of struggling with the Covid-19 global pandemic.
The live band, spearheaded by Musical Director Marci Shegogue, who also takes up the keys for the duration of the performance, is such a welcoming touch to the performance because it gives the audience the sense of truly being “Patsy Cline’s audience” for the portions of the show that recreate her ‘on-stage experience.’ Three of them even coordinated their aesthetic with the show’s overall country-western thematic, donning black Stetson hats for the show. (I think the heat kept the other three from wearing theirs, as I’m sure it was meant to be a totally coordinated look for all six members of the band.) Brian Bera on bass, Andrew Nixon on fiddle, Justin Thomas on drums, Dave Hadley on pedal steel, Jimi Cupino on guitar, and Marci Shegogue on keys comprise the “Bodacious Bobcat Band” (and there’s even a cute segment where Patsy introduces them as Jim-Bob, Jo-Bob, Bob-Bob, etc.) Shegogue does an exceptional job of keeping pristine sound balanced against Patsy’s musical numbers while letting the musicians exist as a playful ‘background’ character.
Heather C. Jackson has designed the show’s wardrobe with Hair & Makeup Designer and Wardrobe Supervisor Tiffany Freeze making sure everything is set to go for the performance. While Patty flips through a series of four or five different outfits (all of which are era and style appropriate, while simultaneously complimenting the figure of the Patsy Cline character) Jackson and Freeze keep the Louise character in just one outfit, which thoroughly reflects her vivacious character that there hardly feels a need to have her in anything else. The brown cowgirl boots, the tight jeans, and the country-style applique on the shirt’s lapels put the Louise character right in the thick of things. Jackson and Freeze’s work on the Pasty costume showcase finesses and sensibility. Everything is performance appropriate, not only in its style but in its lightweight nature, given that the performances are outdoors in the middle of a heat-wave spring in Maryland.
Director Elizabeth Lucas lets the show speak for itself, falling not on the song catalogue of Patsy Cline— as is the case for most jukebox-style musicals— but rather on the narrative set forth by the Louise character. The story, while all about Patsy Cline, is really more centralized around the notion of how Patsy Cline has impacted Louise’s life, first through her music alone and then through her interactions once the characters finally meet. Lucas crafts a beautiful moment at the shows’ conclusion, where the audience is treated to the Patsy Cline character actually handing Louise one of the infamous letters, signed “Love Always, Patsy Cline.” (This is where author Ted Swindley drew both the title and inspiration of the show from, a real-life pen-pal style friendship.)
As mentioned, the story is the narrative responsibility of Louise, and Rachel Lawhead tackles the role superbly. There is an over-the-top quality that goes with Louise that is simply indescribable and Lawhead delivers this on every level while simultaneously finding a balance between the hilarious heightened sense of operation of Louise and being earnest and present in the moment. There is a great potential to play this character as a caricature and Lawhead tempers a balance between that potential and the comedy that is scripted into the character. She also excels at handling the audience (there are a great many micro-moments of interaction between her character and the audience and she delivers them brilliantly.) Lawhead’s finest quality in her performance is her ability to retell the stories that shape the overall plot of the production. When she takes on various character voices— like that of the radio station DJ, her boss, or her boyfriend— she doesn’t fully shift her voice but rather delivers a mocked-up imitation of how these characters sound to Louise inside Louise’s head. And this is both hilarious and honest. There’s even a few moments where Lawhead’s Louise gets to sing and she’s got quite a set of vocal chops to showcase in the performance, brief though her moments in the singing spotlight may be.
Shelly Lynn Walsh has the routine of Patsy Cline tuned and honed to a fine science, so much so that her first few numbers— “Honky Tonk Merry Go Round”, “Walkin After Midnight” and “I Fall To Pieces” feel just a little hollow, almost like Walsh is trying to be a radio recording of Patsy Cline rather than on stage in the moment. (This could be perceived as intentional as most of the earlier numbers featured are meant to be Louise hearing them either on the radio or the television, even though the Patsy Cline character is singing them live on stage, but given the slight uncertainty with which they resonate as Walsh sings them, it’s unclear if this is the case.) But as the show gains momentum, Walsh wakes up and becomes lively putting full feeling, gut, and gusto into her performance. “Stupid Cupid” and “Your Cheatin’ Heart” burble with a lively country-music feel. Walsh, who has just the slightest gravely edge to some of her sounds is channeling the spirit and sense of Patsy Cline while bringing her own flare to the role. She’s being Patsy Cline rather than imitating her and this makes for a good performance. Her heartwarming rendition of “If I could See the World (Through the Eyes of a Child)” is truly touching.
The exhilarating and touching friendship that Walsh, as Cline, and Lawhead, as Louise, develop throughout the production is the true heart of the performance. Every instance of their bonded togetherness feels authentic through and through, and its these moments, sometimes in silly little off-handed comments between one another, that really give the show a sense of depth, without forcing the show to wallow in something gooey or overly sentimental. Even the show’s natural conclusion, which as history regrettably dictates to be tragic, feels bittersweet rather than blue and melancholy. (For those who don’t know the real-life tragedy of Patsy Cline, she was killed tragically at the age of 30 in a plane crash.) But even this blight of history can’t disrupt the beautiful, welcoming feeling of the friendship between the pair of Patsy and Louise.
Bring your bug spray, your hydration, and your sunglasses, because outdoor theatre— regardless of where you are in Maryland— has the potential to bring a few unexpected elements to it, but do not let that deter you from coming to see this delightful production. It’s a feel-good, clap-your-hands-n-stomp-your-feet, wonderful performance that will appeal to fans of Patsy Cline, those who’ve never heard of her, and theatre lovers everywhere.
Running Time: 2 hours with one intermission
Always, Patsy Cline plays select evenings through June 11, 2021 with Free Range Humans at the Baker Park Bandshell— 21 N. Bentz Street in Frederick, MD. Tickets are available at the door or in advance online.
