Sarasota’s Players Centre stages the wettest musical ever

If you asked a bunch of people what the greatest movie musical of all time is, a lot of them will say “Singin’ in the Rain,” the lighthearted 1952 paean to old Hollywood.

In 1983, the musical was adapted for the stage, originally in London, by Berry Comden and Adolph Green, who wrote the book and a couple of the songs for the film version. That adaptation is next up for Sarasota’s Players Centre for Performing Arts.

The stage musical follows the movie very closely, with all the same songs (most of them, including the title number, written long before the movie was conceived) and the same story, about film performers in the 1920s caught in the awkward transition form silent pictures to talkies.

One of several iconic scenes in the film is the title song and its accompanying dance. It’s retained in the stage version, with water actually poring down onto the stage. The scene, on stage, has been noted for being spectacular and potentially very dangerous. (Besides the decreased traction for the dancer, the water could get into the production’s electronics.)

The Players production is directed by Kathy Junkins, with choreography by Brian Finnerty

Details: Through Feb. 4, The Players Centre for Performing Arts, 838 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday. $27 and $32; $14 students. 941-365-2494, theplayers.org.

This story was originally published January 17, 2018 at 5:12 PM with the headline "Sarasota’s Players Centre stages the wettest musical ever."