Landmark’s production of Groundhog Day has been featured in the Grunion Gazette and Press Telegram with an engaging feature written by Willie Plaschke. Read some quotes below and the full article on the Press Telegram website.
Based on the beloved 1993 film, this beautifully intelligent production will be performed in the sanctuary of the First Congregational Church of Long Beach.
Directed by Megan O’Toole with musical direction by Curtis Heard and produced by Jay Dysart, the musical is led by Dysart himself as Phil Connors, the cynical weatherman caught in a time loop on Feb. 2 during the annual Groundhog Day celebration.
The musical, with music and lyrics by Tim Minchin and book by Danny Rubin (who also wrote the original film’s script), premiered on Broadway in 2017 after a successful run in London’s West End. It received seven Tony Award nominations and won the Olivier Award for Best New Musical in 2017.
So it’s a thrill for this musical to finally be rearing its head in Southern California.
“[Composer and lyricist] Tim Minchin is a marvel,” producing director Jay Dysart said. “His extraordinary, multidisciplinary career definitely put a stamp on Groundhog Day. It’s clear the show is driven by his creative vision.”
This creativity unfolds subtly, but surely, through the musical score: “A tool that Minchin uses in the musical is the concept of Western music itself,” explains Dysart. “When you hear an octave, it’s a musical progression that’s progressing forward, but also returning to its origin.”
– Willie Plaschke, The Press Telegram
The show is not only visually stunning but thematically rich. Once he discovers his motionless predicament, Phil Connors, like his movie counterpart (famously played by Bill Murray), spends a lot of his time trying to manipulate the world around him.
– Willie Plaschke, The Press Telegram
What more could you want out of a night of theater during the closing months of a blustery, mindless, endlessly looping 2024?
– Willie Plaschke, The Press Telegram