REVIEW: Evil Dead The Musical brings the laughs
Hamilton Theatre Inc. production features strong performances, gorgeous set design, and some of the horror of the films.
Sam Raimi’s ’80s cult classic zombie/demon franchise lives on into the 2020s, with a surprisingly Canadian twist! A comedy-horror musical that debuted in 2003 in Toronto, Evil Dead The Musical combines the plotlines of Evil Dead and Evil Dead 2, reviving the legacy for younger generations with an album to stream in between.
As the story goes; five college students break into an “abandoned” cabin in the woods for a weekend vacation, and accidentally unleash a supernatural horror that turns each student into an undead demon. Reanimated corpses, haunted trees, chainsaws, one-liners and lots of blood commence.
As the Hamilton Theatre Inc. describes it: "Evil Dead The Musical takes all the elements of the cult classic films The Evil Dead and Evil Dead 2 and combines them for one of the craziest, funniest, and bloodiest theatrical experiences of all time.
"It’s all up to Ash (a housewares employee, turned demon-killing hero), and his trusty chainsaw to save the day. Blood flies. Limbs are dismembered. Demons tell bad jokes… and all to music. The songs in the show are completely off the wall as well. Titles like “All the Men in My Life Keep Getting Killed by Kandarian Demons” and “What the F**k was That?” have had audiences rolling in their seats, and screaming for more and more blood."
Fantastic lead John Connolly is the wise-cracking, zombie-slaying protagonist Ash, whose performance carries the production, and Leia Mahoney as Ash’s zombified sister Cheryl is a hilarious villain-sidekick standout. There isn’t a weak moment to be seen, however, as every cast member – Roy Dear (Scott), Gregory Sokil (Ed), Lexine Calderon (Linda), Katlyn Alcock (Annie), Erin Ross (Shelly), and Gregory Cruikshank (Jake) – brings their A-game and silliest wit to the stage.
The production team here is: Matt Moore, director and choreographer; Kelly Knight, musical director; Haleigh Wallace, stage manager; Jake Jensen, producer; Nikki Horvath, choreographer; Kayla Jensen, scenic and props designer; Jonah Schaufler-Biback, lighting designer; and The Muses, costumer designers.
The Evil Dead series is famous for its corn, but some jokes and banter in Evil Dead The Musical could use a bit of refinement. Evil Dead 2’s fusion of ridiculousness and scares earned the movie its classic status, when adding musical numbers and doubling the character dialogue, it becomes difficult to grip onto the spooky within the horror production. While not unique to the Hamilton Theatre Inc performance, some tweaks could be made to enhance the frights so as to not lose them among the laughs.
Expect captivating performances, gorgeous set design and a tasteful amount of splurting blood.
NEED TO KNOW
Evil Dead The Musical
Continues Nov. 12, 14, 7:30 p.m., midnight performance, 11:55 p.m., Nov. 13.
Hamilton Theatre Inc.
140 MacNab St. N. Hamilton
Tickets: $27 for the floor.
Tickets available here (Nearly sold out!)
Run time: Roughly 1.5 hours.
Audience Advisory: Rated R: Adult themes, sexual situations, horror themes, gore, and strong language. Audience members may get splattered with fake blood.