 "Photo: Courtesy of Broadway San Diego")
 "Photo: Courtesy of Broadway San Diego")
In "Hey, Big Spender," one of the opening numbers of the musical "Sweet Charity," a group of dancers prance around seductively, singing "Do you want to have fun? How about a few laughs?" The dancers promise a night filled with good times, and they deliver.
Molly Ringwald stars in the revived '60s musical as Charity Hope Valentine, a woman who has spent eight years working at Fan-Dango Ballroom, where women are paid to slow dance with wealthy men. Charity is a taxi dancer with an innocent sense of true love. After nurturing her latest broken heart, with the help of her fellow dancers, Charity falls into adventure after misadventure - from meeting famous film star Vittorio Vidal (Aaron Ramey) to getting trapped in a YMCA elevator with timid Oscar Lindquist (Guy Adkins).
The original "Sweet Charity," an adaptation of the Federico Fellini film "Nights of Cabiria," had its first successful showing on the Broadway stage in 1966. The catchy tunes, written by acclaimed lyricist Dorothy Fields and composer Cy Coleman, have captured audiences in a few theater revivals and a feature film in 1969, according to a San Diego Civic Theatre press release.
The production coming to the Civic Theatre has all the flashy dancing, powerful singing and hilarious comedy that makes this musical entertaining. However, it is the touching story of naive, altruistic Charity that compels the most emotion and laughter.
Ringwald, known for her '80s reign of the teen movie genre, is perfect for the role of Charity. She is incredibly believable as a bubbly young woman attempting to exude a sexuality that she sometimes overestimates. It's probably because Ringwald is remembered so well for her roles in films such as "Sixteen Candles" and "The Breakfast Club" that she seems eternally youthful and likable. Ringwald certainly drips sweetness all over the stage, making Charity an unforgettable, loveable heroine.
However, Ringwald's dancing role presents her with a challenge. Ringwald certainly lacks a bit of grace onstage, but she's not competing on "Dancing with the Stars," and, contrary to what Jennifer Gelband wrote in the The New West, Ringwald doesn't dance like Frankenstein's monster.
There's not enough praise to be said about the vibrant set design, the psychedelic costumes and the captivating dancing. Overall, "Sweet Charity" is a delicious indulgence.
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