At Smokey Joe’s Cafe, a play that brought guests back in time recently at Savannah Center, it was easy to imagine a stroll down a tree-lined New York City street in the 1950s or 1960s. It was half musical theater and part concert, and it featured a dramatic twist on dozens of classic songs by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. With “Neighborhood,” the ensemble made the audience feel at ease by projecting a New York City street onto the stage.
According to Ron Lucas, Rafael Rivera, Johnathan Celestin, Jose Figueroa, Dawn Driver, Ashley Baldwin and Vida Allworthy, each song seemed like its own production with its own costumes, surroundings and characters.
They had a train journey with “all aboard” as the program went through the songs of the 1950s and 1960s, with a “Keep on Rollin” and rail-road tracks in the background.
The nonstop music (including “Kansas City,” “Don Juan,” “I Keep Forgettin’,” “On Broadway” and “Jailhouse Rock”) made for a fun day. Onstage, the Craig Turley Orchestra provided musical accompaniment.
Some added a sense of humor, such as “Poison Ivy,” which included green costumes and wigs. Some, like “Neighborhood”, make you yearn for a simpler era.
Nancy Lowery, an Ocala resident, witnessed the show when it first aired in New York City. She had to see it again when she learned it was playing in The Villages.
“The music — that’s the best music. There’s no music better than ‘50s and ‘60s,” she said. “One song (stood out) — ‘I (Who Have Nothing).’ Just the way they sang it. It’s going to bring the house down.”
Terri Morse, a resident of the Village of Pennecamp, has seen the musical twice on Broadway.
“(The songs) evoke a happy time,” she said. “It’s an uplifting feeling.”