Theater review: ‘Gutenberg! The Musical!’ a laugh-filled frolic that sometimes falls flat

“Gutenberg! The Musical!”, a bare-bones comedy musical is Playhouse on Park in West Hartford, is a no-frills musical about a no-chance musical.

Two giddy, goofy friends have taken all the money they have and rented a theater so they can offer a staged reading of their magnum opus, “Gutenberg! The Musical!” in hopes of attracting a producer and financial backing. Their funds have all gone for rent, so the genial co-authors Bud Davenport and Doug Simon are playing all the roles themselves and describing all the action they can’t afford to stage.

The show was created by comedy writers Anthony King and Scott Brown, who performed it themselves at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in New York City, where Brown was the artistic director. There were productions at the New York Musical Festival in 2006, in London also in 2006, and off-Broadway in 2007. It became popular at small theaters throughout the 2010s and experienced a new rush of popularity when it was done on Broadway by the star duo of Andrew Rannells and Josh Gad.

King, Brown and Alex Timbers (the Yale alum who directed both the off-Broadway and Broadway productions of “Gutenberg!) went on to co-create (with composer/lyricist Eddie Perfect) the Broadway musical version of “Beetlejuice.”

Bud and Doug lay out their struggles trying to get “Gutenberg!” seen. They delve into their personal relationship. They keep stopping the reading to gush over something they’re proud of. Mostly they describe what they’re doing onstage, spout hilarious platitudes about “imagination” or utter portentous lines like “America killed your mom.”

The pair’s main mode of theatrical expression is headgear. There are dozens of ball caps emblazoned with the names of characters in the show, from the lead role of Johannes Gutenberg (yes, the one who invented the printing press in the 14th century) to such minor players as “Other Woman” and “Beef Fat Trimmer.”

Jeremiah Michael Ginn as Bud Davenport and John Wascavage as Doug Simon impressively maintain their fixed grins and hyperactive demeanors but can exhaust the audience before they exhaust themselves. This production also includes a swing performer, Jimmy Donohue, who has understudied both roles and is performing at some of the morning shows or when Davenport or Wascavage are indisposed.

Director Sasha Brätt, whose many productions at Playhouse on Park have included “All is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914,” “The Revisionists” and “Tuesdays With Morrie” and who has also directed regularly at Seven Angels Theatre and the Ivoryton Playhouse, keeps things moving, shifting the two actors all around the stage and making them leap on and off rehearsals boxes and other small platforms. Miles Messier fades into the background as the piano accompanist.

This is the kind of show where a director and music director can only do so much. Ultimately, any production of “Gutenberg! The Musical!” has the same problem as the show-within-the-show: Two people must sell this show for two hours with little else than their own talent and charm. It’s a monumental effort and it can’t help but lag at times. Part of the problem is that the show’s creators King and Brown tend to take their work too seriously at times. Some of the songs don’t seem parodic or silly at all, just standard showtunes. Ginn and Wascavage sing the hell out of them, occasionally forgetting to be funny.

Economical and straightforward and in-your-face as “Gutenberg! The Musical!” is, and as downright hilarious as many of the lines are, such fresh-faced glee is difficult for anyone to sustain. It fits in with the musical “(title of show),” another New York Musical Festival-nurtured success, as shows that are most appreciated by the type of people who do readings or develop shows rather than those who see them. Watching two guys’ dreams get crushed while they sing and dance can be a lot. The consistent laughs are a balm but there’s an underlying tension that may live with you longer.

“Gutenberg! The Musical” runs through Feb. 8 at Playhouse on Park, 244 Park Road,  West Hartford. Remaining performances are Tuesday at 2 p.m., Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 2 and 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. $45-$55, $42.50-$52.50 students/seniors/military, $35 previews. playhouseonpark.org.

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