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(click to enlarge)
Produced
July 31 – August 2, 2008
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Li’l Abner – the story…
Al Capp's world famous characters
have been placed in an upbeat musical extravaganza. It is a
satisfying mixture of hillbilly nonsense and sharp, critical humor
that appeals to the sophisticated theatregoer as well as the child
within us all. The curtain opens on "A Typical Day" in Dogpatch,
U.S.A. where the motley and lovable characters who inhabit this
burgh introduce themselves to the audience. There is the homely
Scragg family and Marryin' Sam, as well as Earthquake McGoon, Daisy
Mae, Li'l Abner and Mammy Yokum. It only takes a moment to see that
leisure time is at
 the heart of the local economy and drinking
Kickapoo Joy Juice, fishing and the popular Sadie Hawkins
Day Dance are the favorite pastimes for Dogpatch's citizens. What
starts out as a calm day down at the fishing hole is quickly
interrupted for Abner and his friends when a "Cornpone Meetin'" is
called in the town square by Senator Jack S. Phogbound. This can
mean one of two things-either an event of national importance has
occurred, or there's to be "a hideous change in the Dogpatch way of
life." Sure enough, a change is in the wind because the government
has completed a study finding Dogpatch to be "the most unnecessary,
no-account" place in the whole country, thereby setting the stage
for evacuation of the town so that atomic testing can take place.
Consternation abounds among the townsfolk. If they are to be
evacuated, Dogpatch's annual Sadie Hawkins Day Dance will be
cancelled. And that means that Daisy Mae won't have a chance to
catch her sweetheart Li'l Abner in what is the only way that boy can
join girl in Dogpatch. Oh no! A solution must be found-something
that proves their town is a "necessary" place after all. An
extensive search ensues and Mammy finally comes up with the item to
save the town from extinction-it's the Yokumberry tonic
 which
she has fed her muscle-bound son, Abner, every day of his 'natcherel
life. The potion is sped off to Washington for further testing, and
it looks like Dogpatch and its way of life will be saved. The
communal sigh of relief doesn't last long before things take another
twist. It seems that while Abner is interested in doing the "100%
Red-Blooded American" thing, and will give his potion to the U.S. of
A., General Bullmoose wants to control the potion himself. If Abner
won't sell it to him, Bullmoose will get it some other way, namely
in the form of his shapely girlfriend Appasionata Von Climax.
Suddenly Daisy Mae's future as Mrs. Abner Yokum looks grim, and she
and the rest of Dogpatch
descend on Washington to save Abner from Bullmoose and Appasionata.
The evening before the Yokumberry tonic is to be released as the
cure-all for puny men who want to be strong, a flaw is found in the
formula. Abner's life is saved, but once again the town of Dogpatch
is in jeopardy. Isn't there anything that can be done to save it
from becoming a nuclear wasteland? Just as all seems lost,
Jubilation T. Cornpone, Dogpatch's founder, saves the day. It seems
his statue was
 declared
a "national shrine" by Abraham Lincoln, given all that Cornpone had
done in bringing down the Confederacy during the Civil War. The day
is truly saved: Abner can marry Daisy Mae and everyone settles down
for a peaceful life of rustic simplicity in Dogpatch, U.S.A. Among
the wonderful tunes included in LI'L ABNER are Abner and Daisy's
gentle duet Namely You, a dream ballad If I Had My Druthers, the
hilarious showstopper Jubilation T. Cornpone, General Bullmoose's
Progress is the Root of All Evil, and the political satire The
Country's in the Very Best of Hands. The Sadie Hawkins Day Ballet
and fine choral work also contribute to making this a classic
American musical.
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