Three Chers are higher than one.
Well, possibly not in real life—in reality, that may represent more personality and firepower than the pop/celebrity universe could really handle. But it actually rang true on the premiere (Wednesday, June 19) of “The Cher Show” on the Curran Theater in San Francisco.
The three women who star as Cher on this fun, easygoing jukebox musical – Morgan Scott, Catherine Ariale and Ella Perez – are all fabulous, covering different eras within the lifetime of this recent Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, with Perez playing young Cher (generally known as “Babe” Cher, detailing her rise from childhood to the early success of Sonny & Cher with the No. 1 hit “I Got You Babe”), Ariale as “Lady” Cher (detailing the large success of “The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour” and other TV work) and Scott as “Star” Cher (taking us through the music comeback/Auto-Tune era of the late '80s and early '90s to almost the current day).
All three women take turns within the highlight, depending on which a part of Cher's story is being told – roughly, but not quite. That's what you'd expect from a production like this, which traces the numerous challenges, journeys and triumphs of a serious popular culture figure. But what really sets The Cher Show aside from other celebrity-focused jukebox productions, where the story is told to a soundtrack of the star's songs, is the best way the three different versions of Cher interact onstage throughout.
As a chapter in a single Cher's life unfolds, the opposite two Chers appear periodically to supply her support and encouragement. They also bicker and joke with one another – which is great fun when Cher is definitely poking fun at herself – and, most significantly, they harmonize, with various combos of those three great voices coming together on a soundtrack that features such famous numbers as “I Found Someone,” “The Beat Goes On,” and, in fact, “I Got You Babe.”
The show, which premiered in Chicago in 2018 before moving to Broadway and winning two Tonys, begins in the current day as “star” Cher sings “If I Could Turn Back Time” after which, well, does this — and takes fans back to when she was a baby growing up in Southern California within the '50s and first fell in love with music and the opportunity of stardom (on a family trip to Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood).
She achieved this feat after meeting the charismatic Sonny Bono on the age of 16. The duo soon brought their TV-friendly hippie vibe and pleasing vocal harmonies to the masses with the smash hit “I Got You Babe.”
From there, the chapters of Cher's remarkable story unfold in an entertaining and fast-paced manner, with one fan-favorite song after one other underscoring the large moments of her profession and private life. It's not a straight line journey to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Oscar glory, but one filled with zigzags, starts and stops – all of that are gripping theater.
The supporting solid is great – especially Lorenzo Pugliese, who plays a mostly lovable version of Sonny Bono (though he probably spent rather a lot more time within the gym than the late Salvatore) and showed great comedic timing and chemistry with all of the Chers he interacted with over the course of the two hour and 40 minute (with intermission) production.
In keeping with this, the costumes are stunning, elaborate and, above all, quite a few – which suggests that an enormous truck could be needed only for the wardrobe if the “Cher Show” traveled from city to city.
All in all, it’s an entertaining and exciting evening of theatre, which can in fact appeal primarily to long-time Cher fans, but will even entertain the uninitiated. Experience the show until June twenty third on the Curran (www.broadwaysf.com) or plan to see the film when it returns to the Bay Area in March for a run with Broadway San Jose (www.broadwaysanjose.com).
image credit : www.mercurynews.com