The disability-affirmative theatre company outdoes itself with a highly challenging musical

Phamaly Theatre Company has been planning to do A Chorus Line for over three decades. It’s now finally onstage in an impressive production that will change the way you might think about disabled performers.

A Chorus Line opened on Broadway in 1975, the brainchild of director Michael Bennett. This production, directed by  of Phamaly Artistic Director Ben Raanan, is a loving recreation of the original production that wowed audiences so many years ago. Raanan has cast an actor with a disability in every role — some with visible disabilities and others without. This may give pause to some people who can’t see beyond disability and recognize total ability. But one doesn’t have to go far into the first act to disprove any of those misconceptions.

The plot is a simple one: Seventeen performers are auditioning for a handful of chorus roles in a new musical. For two-and-a-half hours, we get to know the auditioning singers/dancers through their own words, along with the show’s director Zach (Trenton Schindele) and his assistant Larry (River Hetzel). It’s a deeply emotional journey as each performer bares their soul and explains why they put themselves on “the line.”

As Cassie, Jessica Swanson is outstanding as Zach’s former love interest who’s in desperate need of a job. Clad in a bright red dress, she pleads with Zach for a chance to be in his chorus. He’s hesitant, but she convinces him with a showstopper musical number “The Music and the Mirror.”  Choreographed by Savannah Svoboda, it’s a highlight of this production.

Jessica Swanson as Cassie | Photo: Michael Ensminger Photography

Dancing from a wheelchair

Early in the first act, we are charmed by Mike (Casey Myers), who, in his rendition of “I Can Do That,” explains the reasons for his interest in dance. Done entirely from his wheelchair, he gives an incredible performance that captures the very essence of movement. Also choreographed by Svoboda, It answers the question of how someone in a wheelchair can dance with a passionate exclamation point.

As Paul San Marco, Markus Rodriguez-Intulaksana silences the audience in the second act without a single dance step. In his recollection of growing up Puerto Rican and wanting to be a dancer, Rodriquez-Intulaksana is emotionally stripped bare, delivering a heart-wrenching monologue exposing the audience to the downside of show business.

For most of the performance, Zach isn’t visible to much of the audience. Instead we hear Schindele in the role barking commands from just off stage with great emphasis and clarity.

Raanan’s direction of the show takes full advantage of the Kilstrom Theatre’s in-the-round stage while highlighting the strengths of each performer. The result is a show that rivals many of the productions of A Chorus Line I’ve seen over the past 40 years.

On top of everything else, Raanan has done the almost unbelievable by using 28 actors and filling the small Kilstrom stage in-the-round for what is usually a straightforward proscenium presentation. It is an impressive feat, especially for anyone who’s seen the traditional version.

Other choreographers besides Svoboda include Jan Majewski Price, Teri Westerman Wagner, Latisha Hardy, Ashley Coffey and Claire Hayes.

A Chorus Line brings to life 17 characters in search of their dream — much as Phamaly Theatre Company has done for 35 years. This was a challenging production to pull off, but the result is a top-notch entertainment with supreme direction and fantastic actors putting themselves on “the line.”