**** Recommended I really enjoyed the Towle Theater’s production of Superhero, a touching coming-of-age musical. Family angst is a playwright’s meat and potatoes, and this show delivers. How does an angry, grieving teen deal with being uprooted from his friends, his school, his home and all the reminders of his dad? Simon (Grayson Kamel) looks for a superhero. Superhero isn’t a huge soaring musical extravaganza, but it has a lot of heart. 3 ½ Spotlights
We meet Simon, a 15-year-old budding comic book author, sitting on the fire escape of his building, drawing – and acting out – his own superhero comic, the Amazing Sea-Mariner. After Simon’s dad died in an accident two years ago, his mom, Charlotte (Katherine Carl), unable to deal with her grief, sold their house and moved them to the city.
While spending his time on the fire escape, Simon observes the other people living in the building. His downstairs neighbor, Vic (Tony Calkins), is rough and gruff. The guy in 2B, on the other hand, might just be a superhero and Simon is out to prove it.
Meanwhile, in school, Dwayne (Dean Zaverdas, Jr.), a sports star (in his own mind) and bully, pursues Vee (Lauren Reece) and Rachel (Olivia Daly Short). Simon thinks about stepping in but when Dwayne raises his fist, Simon backs away. Vee proved that she can take care of herself when she turned on Dwayne and told him off. After Dwayne slunk off, she even exchanged fist bumps with Simon!
When Charlotte and Simon encounter the mysterious Jim (Joey Harbert) in the laundry room, Charlotte invites him for dinner. Simon makes up an excuse for missing dinner and leaves them alone. After an awkward beginning, Jim and Charlotte are enjoying themselves when something odd happens and Jim takes off abruptly.
After Simon sees another odd thing happen, he confronts Jim, who tells him that no matter how hard they try, superheroes can’t save everyone.
Superhero, which ran through July 27th at the Towle, was written by John Logan, with music and lyrics by Tom Kitt. The musical opened Off-Broadway in 2019. The Towle production is directed by TJ Bird, with music direction by John Phillips.
Next up at the Towle: Ms. Holmes & Ms. Watson – Apt 2B September 12th through 27th. Towle Theater, 5205 Hohman Avenue, Hammond. Street parking is available. Performances: Friday at 8:00 pm, Saturday & Sunday at 2:00 pm. Tickets are $24 in advance, $28 at the door. FYI (219) 937-8780 or www.towletheater.org.