“DREAMGIRLS”: Performances are underway for “Dreamgirls.” Directed by Lili-Anne Brown, the musical runs through March 24 at McCarter’s Matthews Theatre. Above, from left, sporting glittery costumes, the Dreams — Effie (Trejah Bostic), Deena (Ta-Tynisa Wilson), and Lorrell (Keirsten Hodgens) — perform with a backup ensemble that wears the same outfits worn by the Dreams earlier in the show, before they achieve stardom. (Photo by Diane Sobolewski)

By Donald H. Sanborn III

The Motown-inspired musical Dreamgirls has succeeded both as a Broadway show (1981) directed by Michael Bennett, and as a film (2006). But as the dazzling, energetic production that is playing at McCarter demonstrates, this piece is at its best when it can be seen — and heard — on a live stage.

This revival is a collaboration between Goodspeed Musicals, which presented the show in East Haddam, Conn., in late 2023, and McCarter Theatre. Insightfully directed by five-time Jeff Award winner Lili-Anne Brown (assisted by Vaughn Ryan Midder), the production spotlights both the glamour of the music business and the pain caused by machinations that take place behind the scenes.

The book and lyrics are by the late Tom Eyen; the music is by Henry Krieger. The largely sung-through score contains songs that are by turns diegetic (the characters know they are singing) and plot-driven. In form, the show — which chronicles the rise and problematic success of an aspiring trio of female singers—is somewhat like a concert with a plot added.

Krieger’s melodic and sweeping uptempo music drives a steady (occasionally, slightly hectic) pace for the show, and depicts a variety of musical genres and performance styles espoused by multiple artists — most notably Diana Ross and the Supremes (whose own backstage conflicts inescapably influence the plot), but also Aretha Franklin and Etta James. (For a scene in which the protagonists’ song “Cadillac Car” is appropriated by a white singer, the program says “A La Pat Boone,” but “Perry Como” also would fit.)

Music Director Christie Chiles Twillie (aided by Associate Music Director Wes Dziedzic) gets a consistently pleasing sound out of both the cast and the orchestra. Along with the vocal versatility and deliberate phrasing, what stands out about the musical performances is the well-balanced blending of voices. This also is a credit to Sound Designer Stephanie Farina.

In addition to the talented leads and ensemble, the orchestra also is in fine form. The production features new orchestrations by Mark G. Meadows and Adam Dorfman (replacing the original arrangements by Harold Wheeler), which include some lovely, crisp brass sections, as well as brisk, steady percussion that insistently drives the sweeping tempo without becoming oppressive.

Dreamgirls opens with the aptly titled “I’m looking for Something, Baby,” sung by performers who are, to be specific, looking for a shot at the big time. They are participating in the Amateur Night talent competition at the Apollo Theater. The contestants include the bluesy, deep-voiced Tiny Joe Dixon (played by Arnold Harper II).

Also among the hopefuls are the three main female protagonists (who become the “Dreamettes”): the aptly named Effie Melody White (portrayed by Trejah Bostic, who is equally comfortable in her high and low registers, and punctuates the phrasing of her longer notes with a sturdy, deliberate vibrato); Deena Jones (Ta-Tynisa Wilson, who, in playing a character
patterned after Diana Ross, appropriately laces her renditions with contrastingly smooth phrasing); and Lorrell Robinson (Keirsten Hodgens).

The Dreamettes’ entry is a song written by Effie’s brother CC (infused with affable sincerity by Jos N. Banks), titled “Move (You’re Steppin’ on My Heart).” The trio loses the competition, but they and CC meet Curtis Taylor Jr. (Evan Tyrone Martin), a car salesman who becomes the trio’s manager.

Curtis convinces singer Jimmy “James Thunder” Early (Saint Aubyn, whose falsetto range and exuberant movements evoke Little Richard) and Jimmy’s manager, Marty (Robert Cornelius), to hire the Dreamettes as Jimmy’s backup singers. The ambitious Curtis convinces the trio, Jimmy, and Marty to try to aim past traditional R&B and soul audiences, and try to reach the pop market. (Cornelius captures Marty’s distinctly reserved reactions to Curtis’ plans).

The first musical result of this plan is a song inspired by Curtis’ former profession, “Cadillac Car.” When “Cadillac Car” is surpassed in the charts by a white pop artist’s easy listening-style rendition, Curtis resorts to payola, bribing radio stations to play Jimmy and the Dreamettes’ version.

Curtis leads CC, Jimmy, Jimmy’s producer Wayne, and eventually the Dreamettes and the ensemble in “Steppin’ to the Bad Side.” The word “leads” is used precisely; Choreographer Breon Arzell, who supplies sly, smooth moves for the number, often places the other men behind Curtis. We see that, metaphorically, Curtis is trying to turn the other men into backup players in his plans. (Lighting Designer Jason Lynch, who clearly demarcates the diegetic songs from the backstage scenes, bathes the sequence in eerie red lights.)

Soon, Curtis lets his laudable goals for music lead him to treat the other characters in ways that are considerably less commendable. As the Dreamettes become successful enough to be renamed the Dreams, Curtis increasingly favors Deena over Effie, who loves him.

Deena’s smooth vocals take the lead in the title song. Eyen’s pointedly gendered lyrics — “We’re your dreamgirls — boys, we’ll make ya happy” — underline the extent to which the female characters are props in the schemes of the male characters.

Eventually, as the situation between the singers and their manager becomes increasingly tense (and Effie becomes temperamental and misses performances), Curtis replaces Effie with Michelle Morris (Shantel Cribbs). The argument during which Effie discovers that she is being replaced is captured by one of Eyen and Krieger’s most skillfully intricate, even operatic numbers, “It’s All Over.”

This leads into one of Effie’s signature songs, the passionate “(And I Am Telling You) I’m Not Going.” Singers often tend to start this number with much the same intensity that they project at the end. Bostic shapes her rendition differently, arguably giving the intensity more of an arc. She begins quietly, rather plaintively — and then crescendos into a forceful mixture of affection and defiant anger.

Before long Effie is not the only casualty of Curtis’ relentless machinations. Curtis begins to object to Jimmy’s musical renditions and over-the top moves (Martin’s standoffish body language aptly encapsulates Curtis’ reaction to a bit of
particularly outlandish choreography, fearlessly delivered by Aubyn). Martin and Wilson are vocally pleasing and capture Curtis’ manipulative nature, and Deena’s mixture of acquiescence and discomfort, in the second act duet “You Are My Dream.”

Effie’s attempt at a comeback, and Curtis’ reaction, come to a head in the showpiece “One Night Only.” The song is presented in two (competing) styles: a brisk ballad performed by Effie, and a disco-esque cover rendition by Deena and the Dreams.

In tandem with Brown’s staging and Arzell’s choreography, the production design does an effective job of illustrating the Dreams’ progression from aspiring amateurs to stars.

For an early scene, Costume Designer Samantha C. Jones outfits the trio in plain pink dresses. Later, after they have achieved stardom, the trio — now dressed in much more glittery pink tops punctuated by brighter, delicate sleeves and skirts — stands above an ensemble of backup singers wearing the same plain pink once donned by the trio in their Dreamettes phase.

As the Dreams’ rise to fame leads to Curtis forcing them into the uncomfortable situation of replacing Effie with Michelle, Scenic Designer Arnel Sancianco furnishes the stage with an ornate, gold-colored curtain. Arguably, the trio is in a gilded cage.

This production spotlights two main reasons why Dreamgirls needs to be in a live theater. First, it allows for the palpably enthusiastic energy between the audience and the uniformly talented cast. (At one point, a character breaks the fourth wall and directly addresses us.)

Second, seeing all of the action on a stage thematically underlines the relentlessly performative nature of every facet of the music business. We realize that singers’ professional and personal conflicts become commodities for public consumption, just as much as their actual performances.

The exploration of this concept leads to a notably deft bit of decision-making by Brown and the creative team. After a particularly tense scene, whose events cause a central character to experience considerable emotional pain, a curtain swiftly covers that character. In front of the curtain, singers perform an upbeat musical number. We see human pain hidden by the glitz of entertainment.

Dreamgirls sounds and feels fresh, scarcely showing its 43 years. Probably this is partly due to the fact that it already is set in a specific, iconic (earlier) time period, and that, as noted above, the music is given new arrangements. But the show also has contemporary relevance; it subtly but inescapably addresses issues of race, gender, and, most crucially for the plot, cultural and musical appropriation that were just beginning to be discussed in the 1980s.

Except for a 2001 concert, Dreamgirls has not had a Broadway revival since 1987, and seems due for one. Hopefully, it is not just a “dream” that this production has a future beyond its stay in Princeton. However, in case it does not, the show is not to be missed at McCarter.

Produced by McCarter Theatre in a partnership with Goodspeed Musicals, and directed by Lili-Anne Brown, “Dreamgirls” runs through March 24 at McCarter’s Matthews Theatre. For tickets or additional information, visit McCarter.org.