REVIEW: ‘Avenue Q’ is merry little romp on the wild side

By Diana Nollen

CEDAR RAPIDS - I learned a lot at opening night of “Avenue Q” in the U.S. Cellular Center.

A. I learned that yes, a play can be staged in the cavernous arena, but not perfectly.

B. I learned that yes, “Avenue Q” is, indeed, a wickedly funny show, but not as stupendous as “Wicked,” the show it beat for Tony's “best musical” honors in 2004.

C. I learned that yes, puppets can have sex. Ooh!

Presented by Hancher and sponsored by the Paramount Theatre, the hit, hip adult musical landed in Cedar Rapids for five performances, beginning Friday night and ending with 2 and 7:30 p.m. shows today and Sunday. (March 27 and 28, 2010). This is the first Broadway-touring musical to come here since the Corridor's primary theaters were devastated by the 2008 floods.

Carving a 2,000-seat theater out of the arena obviously wasn't easy. Hanging lots of black curtains created a false proscenium framing the stage and masking the backstage areas.

The stage, itself, is planted close to the balcony, with several rows of top-price seating on the floor. If you're sitting in the center sections, no problem. I, unfortunately, chose an end seat. Because of the extreme angling of the rows, I could only see half the stage. At intermission, an usher took me to a much better vantage point.

But it was too late. All the good stuff happens in the first half, while the second act sags under the weight of tying up loose ends. That's why this show is merely good, not great.

A send-up of “Sesame Street” and other TV fodder for moppets, this mix of humans and Muppet-style puppets paints a less rosy reality for those who wind up in the rundown brownstones along Avenue Q.

They explore jobs and relationships, homosexuality, racism, drugs, alcohol and Internet porn, with two adorable Care Bear-smiling Bad Idea Bears encouraging the residents to walk on the wild side. It's all shocking and hilarious.

The set is great, with doors and windows change with the scenes. The lighting is fun and fanciful, the choreography is innocent and childlike, the costumes are colorful - and so is the language. This show is definitely meant for the child within us, not a child sitting beside us. Leave the kids at home.

The performers - people and puppets - are flawless, even if the script isn't. Especially fascinating is the way the puppeteers mirror the physical expressions of their inanimate, but highly animated, charges.

We follow the antics of roommates Nicky and Rod, who look and sound very much like a grownup Bert and Ernie; scruffy, gruffy Trekkie Monster, who loves to shout out “porn”; naive newcomer Princeton and Kate Monster, trying to find their way in the world; and human characters Gary Coleman, the building super who postures just like the child actor, all grown up; and slacker Brian and his Asian finacee, Christmas Eve, who belts out every song with gusto.

It's a high-energy, high-spirited, merry little romp. But not Romper Room. Miss Peggy would blush.

FAST TAKE

What: Broadway musical “Avenue Q”

In Cedar Rapids: 2 and 7:30 p.m. March 27 and 28, 2010, at the U.S. Cellular Center, 370 First Ave. NE

Tickets: $57 main floor, concourse; $50 balcony; $35 college students; at U.S. Cellular Center Box Office in Cedar Rapids, Iowa Memorial Union Box Office in Iowa City, Ticketmaster outlets, www.ticketmaster.com or 1-(800) 745-3000

In Cedar Falls: 7:30 p.m. March 31 to April 2, 2010, at Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts Center, 8392 University Ave.

Tickets: $27 to $47 at the Gallagher-Bluedorn Ticket Office, 1-(877) 549-7469 or www.unitix.uni.edu

Warning: Contains adult situations and language. “Avenue Q” has not been authorized or approved by The Jim Henson Co. or Sesame Workshop, which have no responsibility for its content.

Information: www.hancher.uiowa.edu/events/Q.html; www.uscellularcenter.com/USCC/uscc.html; www.uni.edu/gbpac and

www.avenueqontour.com