The Hunchback Of Notre Dame, Victor Hugo’s classic take on Beauty And The Beast, arrives at Moonlight Stages in a powerfully acted and gorgeously sung production that is, make no mistake, not the kids-friendly Disney musical some parents might be expecting despite the presence of half-a-dozen or so songs from the 1996 animated movie hit.

 With nearly two-thirds of its Menken-Stephen Schwartz score new to the stage musical, none of the Disney flick’s five screenwriters involved, and only a few of the film’s central conceits making the cut (say adieu to gargoyles Victor, Hugo, and LaVerne), this “new musical based on the Victor Hugo novel and songs from the Disney film” turns out to be a Phantom/Jekyll & Hyde-style drama with equal parts spectacle and heart.

A back-story quite distinct from the Disney flick introduces us to Quasimodo (David Burnham) as the orphaned son of chief villain Claude Frollo’s (Lance Arthur Smith) younger brother Jehan (Max DeLoach) and his gypsy lover Florika (Erin Li).

 Hunchback The Musical does follow the movie as regards the sultry Esmeralda (Janaya Mahealani Jones), introducing us to the seductive gypsy during Quasimodo’s excursion to the annual Festival Of Fools, where our hunchbacked hero also makes the acquaintance of Captain Phoebus (Patrick Cummings) and soon finds himself competing with the comely, long-haired soldier for Esmeralda’s affection.

Meanwhile, Frolo’s lust for the gypsy temptress not only smolders, it ranks tops among reasons for parents of preteens to hire a babysitter before heading off for a night at the theater.

 Menken/Schwartz fans can rejoice that almost all of the film’s original songs remain including “Out There,” “Somewhere,” and “God Help The Outcasts,” many of them backed by the celestial harmonies of an onstage choir*, and at least some of the musical’s new songs prove memorable as well.

 As for Peter Parnell’s book, it’s hard not to be gripped by this centuries-old underdog tale, whether witnessing Quasimodo’s public humiliation at the hands of an intolerant populace or seeing Esmeralda and her fellow gypsies demonized as sub-human. In other words, this is one musical likely to resonate with anyone who’s ever felt victimized by fear-induced prejudice.

 Steven Glaudini directs for Moonlight with trademark imagination and flair. (Having us look directly at the crowd’s reactions to Quasimodo’s ugliest-in-Paris mug is one nifty touch. Another is the trio of curvy, seductive Esmeraldas who pop up to torment Frolo’s lustful body and soul.)

Another noteworthy Glaudini innovation is the decision to have leading man Burnham’s handsome visage masked by prosthetic makeup, allowing us to discover the pure, gentle, innocent heart that lies beneath Quasimodo’s monstrous exterior.

Best known for his romantic star turns on Broadway as Light In The Piazza’s Fabrizio and Wicked’s Fiyero, Burnham gives the proverbial performance of a lifetime as the outwardly hideous, inwardly beauteous Quasimodo, investing Notre Dame’s feared and despised hunchback with childlike wonder and a heart that’s oceans deep.

 Jones breaks out from featured roles as diverse as The Little Mermaid’s Arista and Flotsam and Mamma Mia!’s Lisa to ignite the stage with a tantalizing, tempestuous Esmeralda as misjudged by her own exterior as is her improbable soul mate, and sacré bleu can she and Burnham sing!

 Richard Bermudez is voice-and-charisma personified as gypsy narrator Clopin, through whose eyes and voice we witness Quasimodo’s tale; Smith’s Frollo resists evil stereotypes every step of the way, making Quasimodo’s velvet-voiced nemesis as much victim as victimizer; and Cummings gives us a Phoebus as heroic as his shoulder-length tresses are luxurious.

 Delivering finely-tuned cameos are Scott Arnold (a deliciously effete King Louis XI), Jake Bradford (Lieutenant Frederic Charlus), Gerilyn Brault (Madam), Matt Carvin (Father Dupin), DeLoach, Li, and Matthew Todd Malecki (a silver-throated Saint Aphrodesius), all of whom join ensemble members Morgan Carberry, Carlin Castellano, Patricia Jewell, Johnny Fletcher, Noah Hartwell, Kylie Molnar Sebastian Montenegro, and Tara Shoemaker in executing one exhilarating Roger Castellano-choreographed production number after another, most notably the exuberantly performed “Topsy-Turvy” and “Festival Of Fools” while harmonizing to conductor Elan McMahan’s expert musical direction and a pitch-perfect Moonlight pit orchestra.

 Stephen Gifford’s scenic design gives Hunchback an imposing backdrop (particularly when the cathedral’s colossal bells drop down for Quasimodo to ring), Janet Swenson’s costumes score points for vibrant color and gypsy flair, and Jean-Yves Tessier lights all of the above with panache, with Jim Zadai providing a crystal-clear sound design throughout.

Denice Paxton merits special mention for Quasimodo’s makeup and prosthetics, with additional kudos due Peter Herman’s wigs, Bonnie Durben’s properties, and Timothy Babb’s projections (though it does prove a bit of a letdown when an eleventh-hour rescue is depicted on-screen rather than live). Costuming is coordinated by the always able Carlotta Malone, Roslyn Lehman, and Renetta Lloyd.

Stanley D. Cohen is stage manager and Eden Michel is assistant stage manager. Smith is fight choreographer. Montenegro is assistant to the choreographer.

Following a family-delighting Newsies and a best-ever Mamma Mia!, the adult-oriented The Hunchback Of Notre Dame continues Moonlight Stage Production’s finest summer season in years. With Moonlight’s very first Chicago closing things out next month, it’s been one fabulous summer under moonlit skies.

*Araceli Applegate, Summer Blinco, Mike Bradford, Tom Brault, Jessie Bullock, Wendy Butler, Jordan Hall Campbell, Devin Collins, Jen Corso, David Damitz, Robert Farrell, Jr., Olivia Hardy, Cathy Himlin, Tyler C. Jiles, Fisher Kaake, Navaz Karanjia, Amy C. McDowell, Kimberley Moller, Tara Sampson, Doug Schmitt, Quinton Walker, Ben Williams

Moonlight Amphitheatre, 1200 Vale Terrace Drive, Vista.
www.moonlightstage.com

–Steven Stanley
August 19, 2018
Photos: Ken Jacques

Tags: Alan Menken, Moonlight Stage Productions, San Diego County Theater Review, Stephen Schwartz