DANGEROUS BEAUTY

Among the many things missing from the ew musical Dangerous Beauty, premiering at The Pasadena Plahouse, is danger or beauty. The mess that is onstage is a bad omen as the 1st production for the revived playhouse. This show about courtisans lacks any eroticism. The actors seem uncomfortable with sexuality. The highlight of the show is the set of Venice and the costumes, the good news ends tehre. The musical staging is a mess, the choreography is laughable, the acting is of community thetare caliber (led by Broadway actors Jenny powers & James Synder), their ability to speak the prose is amateurish. The score lacks sexuality or passion & misses depth of feeling and the book is a bore. I admit I haven’t seen the movie it was based on but if the board that chooses shows and directors for the Pasadena Playhouse doesn’t make far better choices it will disappear again quickly!