If you haven't seen The Full Monty in Provincetown, Massachusetts, then you really haven't seen The Full Monty.
The four-year-old Peregrine Theatre Ensemble, based in Provincetown, has mounted, no pun intended, the stage version of the beloved movie, and offers a highly enjoyable, lighthearted production that's sure to please.
The musical, with book by Terrence McNally and music and lyrics by David Yezbek, ran for 770 performances on Broadway and garnered no less than ten Tony nominations.
The Full Monty in Provincetown is part of the Peregrine Theatre's exploration of celebrity; if anything, the play shows that anyone can have his or her fifteen minutes of fame if that person is willing to work hard enough (and take off all his clothes).
If you haven't seen the movie, stop reading this review and go download it. It's an absolute delight, depicting six men -- five workers and one manager -- laid off from a factory in Sheffield, England, unable to get another job, and who make their money and reclaim their manhood by stripping for a night.
The Full Monty is a euphemism for full-frontal male nudity, which is achieved in the Provincetown version by -- spoiler alert -- you better look fast if you want to see anything.
Beau Jackett does a terrific job as Jerry Wachowski, an unemployed factory worker in Buffalo, to which the stage version has been transplanted. He sings, he dances, he takes off his clothes.
Terrence Brady is completely convincing as his best friend, Dave Bukatinsky, who would rather make love to a chocolate bar than his gorgeous wife, played delightfully by Jacqueline Smook.
Director and choreographer Terry Norgeot does a wonderful job keeping the show moving -- it's a long evening in the theater, but it goes by like a shot.
Musical director Sue Keller gets the most out of her singers. "Big Black Man" and "Michael Jordan Ball" rock the house.
The point of the movie, and the play, is that a man who doesn't work isn't a man. And reclaiming one's manhood becomes the obsession of these men, unemployed against their will.
Their wives and girlfriends attend a Chippendale's type strip show, which gives Jerry the idea of stripping and making enough money to pay child support so that he can maintain his relationship with his young son, touchingly played by Quinn Schuyler.
Special mention goes to Reggie Whitehead, who in the role of Noah "Horse" Simmons, all but steals the show with his arthritic gyrations and powerhouse singing.
Special mention also goes to the Fiore Joseph Barbini, for his portrayal of the stripper-with-a-heart-and-thong-of gold, Keno.
If you want to see more, you'll have to go see it for yourself. On August 18th, the cast puts its clothes on for good, so you've got until then if you want to see these six fellows bare all.