The Westchester Broadway Theatre is currently producing the musical “Five Guys Named Moe” a musical revue inspired by the jazz blues pioneer Louis Jordan.  The show is lively, upbeat and had the audience on their feet on opening night.   The show was produced originally in the UK and later on Broadway where it was nominated for two Tony awards.

The production features 25 songs many of which were written by Louis Jordan.  His blues and jazz style would influence other blues artists and early rock and roll artists such as Chuck Berry.   The story is about a man No Max who is down on his luck, has lost his girlfriend and has turned to hitting the bottle pretty hard.   He is listening to music on his radio when seemingly spring from the airwaves themselves are five performers.  The five men, Eat Moe, No Moe, Four Eyed Moe, Big Moe and Little Moe spring out on stage to sing the first of the evenings songs, “Early in the Morning”.  Though the story is a bit thin, its purpose is to tie together the musical numbers.  Along the way the Five Guys help  No Max out of his situation and make him a better man.

The fast moving Act One features some excellent numbers such as “I Like ‘Em Fat Like That”,  “Safe, Sane and Single” and the fun calypso inspired song “Push Ka Pi Shi Pie” which encourages the audience to actively participate in the singing.  A lyric sheet is given to each audience member so they can sing along.

Act Two wastes no time getting the audience back into the groove with one great song after the other.  Memorable songs such as “Let the Good Times Roll”,  “Caledonia” and “Don’t Let The Sun Catch you Crying” really moved the audience.  The cast was excellent with Quentin Avery Brown as Eat Moe, Tyler Johnson-Campion as No Moe, Napoleon M. Douglas as No Max, Douglas Lyons as Four Eyed Moe, Tony Perry as Big Moe and Isaiah Reynolds as Little Moe.    The cast is backed by an on stage live band of John Daniels (music director/piano), Steve Bleifuss (trombone), Jim Briggs (clarinet, sax), Dave Dunaway (upright bass), Jay Mack (drums) and Brian Uhl (Trumpet).  Having a live band on stage really brought out the authenticity of this great music and complemented the casts vocals.

Directed and choreographed by Richard Stafford, the show runs through March 1, 2020.

for tickets and information:  https://www.broadwaytheatre.com/

Westchester Broadway Theatre

One Broadway Plaza Elmsford New York

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