Lakewood musical gets spirited presentation

“Jungle Queen Debutante,” the season opener which premiered over the weekend at Lakewood Theater, is a quirky musical that blends the kooky comedy of 1950s-style musical theater, the convolutions of Charles Dickens, and the absurdity of “George of the Jungle.” It’s a loopy love story with long-lost children and a lot of places to shout: Hey, watch out for that tree!

The story involves a nerdy archaeologist who goes to the Amazon in search of a magical stone hidden in a mystical village. He is captured by the Jungle Queen and, in one of those zany musical theater moves, suffers amnesia under her spell.

In the meantime, his fiancee back in Connecticut is preparing for her coming-out party when she gets a gut feeling that her man is in trouble with a capital T. Turns out that her aunt, who is also her elocution instructor, is an undercover CIA operative and has been called to the Amazon on a secret mission with HER former lover, the ambassador to Peru. Naturally, Mr. Ambassador has taken up with a jungle chanteuse whose mobster boyfriend from New Jersey just happens to show up in the Amazon, too. And then there’s the grunting Jungle Queen, who swings onto stage now and then to do a primal dance of power and hip gyrations.

But hey, it’s a jungle out there. Suffice it to say that this is pretty cornball theater. Sean O’Donnell’s script has some funny lines and Thomas Tierney’s music and lyrics can be catchy — although the strongest song of the show has the inane chorus of “Pack, pack, pack today. Pack your cares away.” Not exactly Sondheim but the women who sing it — Lisa Neal (the deb), Beth Lanpher and Nicole Peid (her friends) and Debra Susi (the pistol-packing aunt) — bring some real Broadway snap to it. This particular foursome is, in fact, the best part of this show. Susi, in particular, has spectacular stage presence, and her cohorts seem right at home in their cartoonish characters.

The others who deliver hotshot performances are Nathan Raleigh and Arturo Meneses, in the dual roles of the queen’s minions and New Jersey gangsters; Michelle Dugal, as the Xena-like queen; and Jeff Johnson as bossman Dominnick Zeppoli, who left behind cannolis in Jersey so he could find the Forbidden Emerald.

Director Jeffrey Quinn and choreographer Julie McAllister have fun with this cast of community actors, who give their all — even if they are doing the box step. For that reason, it’s easy to be forgiving of singing voices that miss the note — or never had it to begin with. Or wild moments that — even for the most experienced of actors — can easily get out of hand. It’s less easy to forgive the musical trio of piano, drums and bass for being sluggish.

If you like the old standards, you may find this stage piece overly hokey. There’s lots to laugh about — particularly in the cut-loose performances of the actors. But there’s also some stuff to sleep through — including about a half a dozen songs that are apparently meant to develop character. Unfortunately, what they end up developing is the audience’s character for patience.

“Jungle Queen Debutante” will be performed 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m. Wednesday and Saturday at Lakewood Theater in Madison. For information, call 474-7176.