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<\/a>\u201cSpamalot\u201d opens with a historian (Bryan Banville) telling the audience we\u2019re in England in 932 A.D. The stage is soon crowded with a hopelessly colorful bunch of clearly un-English peasants \u2014 some don long blond braids, some wave Finnish flags, and others carry fish of varying sizes for the \u201cFisch Schlapping Dance.\u201d<\/p>\n
When the historian wails \u201cI said ENGLAND,\u201d the scene shifts to Cygnet\u2019s artistic director Sean Murray as King Arthur, \u201criding\u201d in with sidekick and \u201csteed\u201d Patsy (Jonathan Sangster), who knocks two coconut shells together to provide the sound of horse hooves. Murray is reprising the role he performed splendidly a few years ago at Vista\u2019s Moonlight Amphitheatre.<\/p>\n
Arthur is looking for recruits for his Knights of the Round Table. In this goofy, fact-challenged retelling of the story, he\u2019ll find a few \u2014 and even get heavenly instructions for a quest.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s Dennis (David S. Humphrey), who lives with his mom Mrs. Galahad (Anthony Methvin). Dennis challenges the very idea of the divine right of kings, especially Arthur\u2019s claim that the Lady of the Lake handed him the sword Excalibur and \u201cthat is why I am your king.\u201d<\/p>\n Dennis maintains that \u201csupreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony.\u201d But he agrees to go along if Arthur can prove that \u201cthe soggy old blonde exists.\u201d<\/p>\n She does, played and sung smashingly by Christine Hewitt, surrounded by her barely-clad Laker Girls who can sing, dance, and even perform a cheerleading routine complete with pom-poms. So Dennis is dubbed Sir Galahad.<\/p>\n Then there\u2019s Lancelot (Evan White), hopelessly blond and foolishly fearless, who will discover his true love when asked to save a \u201cmaiden\u201d in distress.<\/p>\n That would be Prince Herbert (Banville), who doesn\u2019t want to marry the girl chosen by his dad just because her father owns a lot of land.<\/p>\n God (uncredited) will also appear on video, giving the Knights a quest: to find the Holy Grail, a chalice allegedly used at the Last Supper. \u201cGet to it, all right?\u201d he says. \u201cThese people don\u2019t have all night.\u201d<\/p>\n But the English knights will encounter the extremely inhospitable French army, most especially the rude French Taunter (Banville), who will force the English to withdraw and run away. Banville gets a workout in this show. The actor also plays Not Dead Fred, who insists he is not a plague victim \u2014 no matter how hard they try to bury him.<\/p>\n It goes on like that, offering tap-dancing knights, a killer rabbit, and a monk who sees that the Black Knight (Humphrey) has lost his arms in battle and picks up arms for the poor.<\/p>\n Silly? You bet. Groaners? Sometimes. But funny? Absolutely \u2014 and full of references to movies, actors, and even to Broadway theater itself, asserting in a hilarious song that \u201cYou Won\u2019t Succeed on Broadway\u201d (if you haven\u2019t any Jews).<\/p>\n The costumes are uncredited but terrific and numerous. Sarah Palmer Marion is listed as costume coordinator and dresser \u2014 the latter a huge job and well done.<\/p>\n Sean Fanning\u2019s surprisingly simple set features an expanse of blue sky with huge clouds. Animated sheep, buglers and such scurry across or dive down through the clouds during the overture.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a>