‘Exorcistic: The Rock Musical’ evaluation: A celeb is born in a rocky ‘Exorcist’ parody by means of NewsFlicks

No film is secure from a musical reinterpretation. Broadway has been dazzled with reinventions like The Manufacturers, Sundown Side road, and Demise Turns into Her, whilst off-Broadways were given more bizarre with choices like Heathers, Tooth, and Little Store of Horrors.

However how do you flip The Exorcist, a in reality iconic horror film about demons and sacrilege, filled with sensible results that appear not possible to recreate on level, right into a musical comedy? 

For author Michael Shaw Fisher, you come back at it from a large number of angles. Impressed by means of the madcap humor and fourth-wall-breaking of John Cameron Mitchell’s Hedwig and the Indignant Inch, Fisher created Exorcistic: The Musical. Moderately than enjoying like a straight-up parody (like Tooth), Fisher now not most effective recreates scenes from William Friedkin’s well-known movie, but in addition gifts them as a play-within-a-play. Puzzled? Oh, simply you wait. 

For each in reality rousing musical quantity or solidly foolish gag, Exorcistic: The Musical is cluttered by means of bits and large concepts that simply do not play out. 

Exorcistic: The Musical is greater than a parody of The Exorcist. 

Jaime Lyn Beatty and solid of “Exorcistic: The Rock Musical.”
Credit score: David Haverty

Moderately than rolling proper in with the primary quantity “A Christian in Iraq (Pazuzu Theme),” Exorcistic: The Musical units up the forged and staff in the back of the rock musical. The forged piles onto the level, introducing themselves as actors or actor/manufacturer, actor/author, and so forth. Amongst them are acquainted archetypes: the sublime main girl, the bold ingenue, the playboy main guy, the pompous writer, the egotistical persona actor, the cheerful elder, and the infuriated level supervisor. 

Moderately than simply following the plot of The Exorcist, Fisher is introducing a thread about warring egos, pretentious showmanship, and poisonous showmances. However that is not all. Firstly, the forged welcomes the target audience to a level studying, then starts performing out the film — to start with with minimum props, like a sheet song stand. However then they pause to do an “anatomy of scene.” In those segments, which pop up all over the display, the actors escape in their Exorcist-inspired roles as possessed kid, involved mother, and plagued priest to lecture the target audience about what the supply subject material supposed. However even right here they are performing, enjoying actors explaining The Exorcist.

Frankly, those sections are tedious. Even if the insights published are fascinating, they really feel like a lecture, or worse, but a justification that The Exorcist is essential sufficient to advantage a parody rock musical first of all. It is a hat on a hat on a hat. A parody about The Exorcist — even an unofficial one — will have introduced the irreverent a laugh of Puffs, an unofficial Harry Potter comedy that wowed audiences by means of that specialize in the much-ignored Hufflepuffs. Piling at the play-within-a-play to make Exorcistic: The Musical now not just a parody of The Exorcist but in addition a parody of parody musicals is bold sufficient. Then, Fisher provides at the “anatomy of scene” interludes. One of the crucial parts of the play parody and the Exorcist parody paintings. However altogether, it is a tangle of concepts and feelings that make the true manufacturing exhausting to apply and not more a laugh.

Emma Hunton is definitely worth the price tag value of Exorcistic: The Musical. 

Emma Hunton as Megan in “Exorcistic: The Rock Musical.”
Credit score: David Haverty

This musical parody works very best when it delivers on what the identify guarantees. Emma Hunton stars as Megan O’Neil — the legally unique parody of The Exorcist‘s Regan MacNeil. And whilst the repetition of characters announcing such things as “Regan — I imply Megan!” will get previous speedy, Hunton is on fireplace on that level. Her first giant quantity is “Hi there Captain Rowdy,” which comes to a Ouija board, a demon with horns and cowboy apparel, and a none-too-subtle metaphor for locating masturbation. It is outrageous, and Hunton revels in it with a captivating gusto.

As Megan turns into more and more possessed by means of Captain Rowdy, Hunton’s habits turns into extra competitive and sexual. This units the level for the reenactment of a few epically hectic scenes from The Exorcist, involving peeing on a rug, projectile vomiting on a clergyman, enjoying with a crucifix, and levitating off her mattress. Strangely, the spectacle bits that paintings very best are easy, depending mainly on Hunton’s efficiency over what an off-off-Broadway finances may organize in relation to results.

Emma Hunton as Megan in “Exorcistic: The Rock Musical.”
Credit score: David Haverty

Hunton explodes on level, making a song vivid and brash like a Broadway diva. Thru her bodily comedy, she relishes within the pre-established transgressive behaviors of Regan — together with taunting this critic right through the urination scene by means of flicking the drift of liquid nearer whilst making eye touch. However she’s completely extra special in the second one act spoil quantity, “Your Cunting Daughter.” 

Wearing the harrowing realization of simply unhealthy issues have got on this D.C. house, Megan unleashes a sizzling tune quantity that now not most effective rocks, it is going full-on Fosse. A snappy exchange finds a puke-green fringe get dressed, which Hunton shakes with planned abandon, whilst pulling dance strikes that appear stolen from Chicago. It is deranged and completely exhilarating. 

Exorcistic: The Musical does an excessive amount of. 

The forged of “Exorcistic: The Rock Musical.”
Credit score: David Haverty

This turducken of a play will get extra complicated because it is going. Necessarily, inside the play it is not that Emma (the fictitious persona) is getting nice at enjoying a possessed Megan, it is that she has additionally been possessed.

Then, in between acts, the fictitious solid makes the soar from off-Broadway to Broadway, as we are knowledgeable by means of an untraditional post-intermission curtain speech. Over the process the display, the actors (performed by means of actors) have observed the manufacturing increase over months, whilst we see small adjustments, like higher props and flashier costumes. Alternatively, the display itself does now not develop in the similar means.

Whilst there are suitably foolish songs like “A Film Big name With a Fucked Up Child” and “The Jesuit Blues,” the display suffers when Hunton is not on level. Her co-stars, whilst earnest, shouldn’t have her skill to challenge. The evening I attended, the sound combine was once off, so the lyrics of a number of numbers was once completely drowned out by means of the rock band supposed to be backing them. In discussion scenes, Jaime Lyn Beatty was once a standout, enjoying the level supervisor decided to get her second within the highlight. But if it got here to songs, Hunton by no means were given drowned out. 

To director Chadd McMillan’s credit score, the forged tries to take advantage of the distance. Carried out on the Asylum in New York (the place this critic prior to now noticed and praised the musical comedy Cellino V. Barnes), Exorcistic: The Musical has a small level to paintings on. So, from the primary scene, the forged makes transparent the entire of the theater is their play house.

They stomp off the level for team numbers, and hurricane up the steps, deep into the audiences’ seating. They even have interaction, urging target audience participants within the entrance row or the aisle to get in at the motion. This is able to imply preserving a prop for a personality spoil, grabbing a boob from a consenting actress, getting flirted with by means of a demon, or getting sopping wet in glittery confetti. (I will be able to discuss from enjoy, you’ll be able to be discovering confetti on your hair for hours, if now not an entire day after.) A much less welcome facet impact of the actors’ getting this just about the target audience integrated inadvertently being spit on. In fact, it is a a part of passionate making a song. However, be warned: There’s a splash zone, and it’s the entrance row.

Whilst I admire the manufacturing’s moxie in the use of the distance so absolutely, it in truth makes seats towards the entrance a foul view! For a number of numbers I needed to crane totally round to peer what was once happening in the back of me. And as one of the crucial gags — like a lackluster projectile vomit second — failed to provoke, I needed the point of interest have been much less at the stairs and extra on the right way to make those giant moments in reality shine.

Positive, an off-Broadway manufacturing can not compete with the zany perfection of Demise Turns into Her‘s stair-fall collection. However as Cellino V. Barnes proved remaining 12 months, a small level can paintings nice if the concept that is concentrated. Right here, Fisher appears like he is throwing such a lot of concepts on the target audience, unquestionably one thing will hit. However within the barrage, I used to be continuously extra flustered than enthralled. 

Exorcistic: The Musical has a large number of power. However the bits of it which can be now not a rock musical remove from the portions of it which can be. The ingenue getting possessed idea is a laugh, enjoying into the concept that the film was once cursed — and thereby would not a parody of or not it’s too? However Fisher bathrooms down the play with an excessive amount of flare and loses focal point.

Merely put, this parody works very best when it leans on what we liked about The Exorcist — the creepy visuals, Linda Blair’s mythical efficiency — and offers them a loving however foolish sendup. On this moments, Exorcistic: The Musical is devilishly beguiling. Sadly, the ones highs are too few and a ways between. 

Exorcistic: The Musical is now enjoying on the Asylum in New York.