“Bigfoot!” at New York City Center – Stage I (Photo: Marc J. Franklin)
The charming and deliriously silly new musical Bigfoot! reminded me of some Off-Broadway musicals from the early 2000s, particularly Tim Acito’s Zanna, Don’t!. Both shows use irreverence and heart to slyly tackle hot-button political issues. In 2003, Zanna, Don’t! portrayed a world where everyone is gay and heterophobia ensues when two people of the opposite sex fall in love. Now, with Bigfoot!, writers Amber Ruffin, David Schmoll, and Kevin Sciretta look at another kind of othering.
The small town of Muddirt is run by a despotic mayor (Alex Moffat) who is focused on lining his pockets and holding absolute power as everything around him falls to ruin. Conveniently, there is a creature living nearby on whom he can situate the town’s grievances while skirting all blame himself. However, Bigfoot (Grey Henson) is not the destructive oaf the mayor has portrayed. He’s actually very sweet, kind, and a hard worker, sneaking into town to repair things that are damaged when everyone is asleep. He has a close relationship with his mother, Francine (Crystal Lucas-Perry), who is suffering from any number of unspecified illnesses and does not buy the mayor’s bullshit. When a lucrative water park contract comes his way, the mayor plays on the town’s ingrained hatred of Bigfoot to distract them while he scoops up their property and laughs all the way to the bank.
Sounds a bit familiar, no? Bigfoot! is blatantly about the administration’s war on immigrants, ripping families apart and using the blind fury of its base to distract from its own nefarious activities. But it, wisely, never says that outright. It’s set in the ‘80s under a different, but likewise harmful commander in chief, though the parallels to today are stark. It makes its point, strongly, without pandering. Ruffin, Schmoll, and Sciretta show that the sharpest satire is sometimes cloaked in allegory.
Danny Mefford’s production also hearkens back to a simpler Off-Broadway era. Tim Mackabee’s scenic design is delightfully old school, with flat-panel trees that, sometimes jerkily, slide back and forth on parallel tracks. Set pieces are pushed in and pulled out by unseen stagehands with long sticks. It gives the production so much personality in a time when automation is king. Ricky Reynoso’s costumes and J. Jared Janas and Cassie Williams’ wig and hair design bring that delicious ‘80s vibe that kind of makes the production feel like it’s taking place in a summer camp.
Moffat is disgusting and irresistible as the mayor, full of an addictive slimeball energy that makes you despise him, but want to keep watching. Katerina McCrimmon is also fantastic as a hunter hired to kill Bigfoot, Jason Tam is adorable as a doctor who wants to do the right thing, and Jade Jones absolutely pops off the stage in each of her numerous supporting roles. Lucas-Perry is one of the most gifted singing actors in the business and, with only a slight exaggeration, I think she should be in ev-er-y-thing.
Grey Henson is fully in his lovable optimist wheelhouse as Bigfoot, bedecked in Reynoso’s absolutely jaw-dropping fur suit. Henson’s performance ties the entire thing together, pumping his joy into every second. And he sounds so good! Someone write this man a juicy part immediately.
Mefford’s second production of the season, after his excellent revival of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, is just as strong. His choreography is dynamic and the show zips along at a gleeful pace. Bigfoot! is a beautifully earnest throwback musical and I would love for there to be more like it.