Encore Kicks Off 17th Season with the Old-Fashioned Love Story “She Loves Me”

Photo: Maddie Dick and Nicholas Alexander Wilkinson II. Photo by Robert Coelius

Dexter’s Encore Musical Theatre Company has a working collaboration with the University of Michigan (UM) School of Music, Theatre and Dance, and for the third year, UM is staging its fall production at The Encore. UM faculty provided direction for the production, with Sydney Morton directing, choreography by Sean McKnight, and music direction/orchestra conductor by Tyler Driskill.

She Loves Me premiered on Broadway in 1963. The script by Joe Masteroff, music by Jerry Bock, and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick (of Fiddler on the Roof fame, along with Jerry Bock) are derived from the 1937 Hungarian play Parfumerie. The 1940 movie “Shop Around the Corner” and the 1998 movie “You’ve Got Mail” were both inspired by “Parfumerie.” Under Morton’s direction, she maintained all the charm of the classic love story while turning loose the talents of the UM School’s cast.

Morton captured the true essence of this musical. She Loves Me is first, last, and foremost a love story. And Morton delivered.

Morton made some interesting casting choices for the show. Yet, her choices all worked. Zee Happonen in the lead role of Amalia Balash grows on you. She shows audiences her brash side as she tries to land a job at the upscale perfumery. And when ending Act I, Happonen lets everyone see her heart as she sings “Dear Friend.” From that moment on, this show was hers.

Lleyton Allen (Georg Nowack) portrayed an understated leading man, which worked well with all of the other cast, especially with his love interest, Happonen’s Balash. While working together selling perfume, neither realizes that they have been sending letters to one another, causing each to fall secretly in love with their pen pal. Another story of unrequited love. She Loves Me follows a well-worn path – fall in love with a dream, feelings grow, frustration mounts, disappointment, confrontation but love wins out in the end.

The supporting cast is strong and very entertaining. Maddie Dick, playing Ilona Ritter, provides another delightful performance. She is the perfect blend of naivete/innocence and a little bit steamy. Her singing and dancing are a joy to watch. Her ill-fated fling with Nicholas Alexander Wilkinson II’s Kodaly is full of sparks. Singing “Ilona” and “I Resolve” the pair light up the stage. Watching Ms. Dick dance is both a well-choreographed dance number and  the stuff that dreams are made of.

Wilkinson’s Kodaly is unlikeable. And he plays that role to perfection. Even as he is fired from his job at the perfumery, his exit is one of defiance and a vow to return and conquer. And he can pull off a dapper-dan routine effectively.

Dreyvon Simmons plays store owner Mr. Marecek to perfection He shows a wide range of emotions and behaviors. He can rage with the best of them. Receiving disturbing news in Act II, Simmons displays remorse and compassion. Well done, sir.

Sometimes when Broadway shows are put together, they arrange songs in what makes sense and seem logical. When audiences get involved, musical numbers can grow in popularity. That happened with She Loves Me. Amalia gets a visit from Georg, who brings her ice cream. Her feelings begin to change as she sings “Vanilla Ice Cream.” As he leaves, Georg sings “She Loves Me.” Both remain the two most popular songs of the show.

Sean McKnight’s choreography made good use of the limited space on stage with dances that were high-energy and entertaining. It was obvious that the “dance” part of the UM school showed up, ready to go. It was difficult to decide what to look at because there was action everywhere.

She Loves Me runs now through October 11. Tickets can be purchased at theencoretheatre.org or by calling (734) 268-6200. It is two hours and twenty-five minutes of pure fun. And who doesn’t like a love story with a happy ending?