“Monty Python’s Spamalot” is as much fun as ever in the North American tour now playing at the Fox Theatre. This production is based on the 2023 Broadway revival directed and choreographed by Muny favorite, Josh Rhodes.
The show is “lovingly ripped off” from the 1975 film, “Monty Python and the Holy Grail.” The movie is a series of vintage Python parodies based on the legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. The quest for the Holy Grail loosely connects the episodes, which include such classic bits as the Frenchman who shouts insults, the Black Knight who refuses to yield, the killer rabbit, and the Knights Who Say “Ni!”
The musical’s book and lyrics are by Monty Python’s Eric Idle; the music is by Idle and John Du Prez. The adaptation has delightful songs in the same vein as the sketches and adds Broadway musicals to the objects of satire. Rhodes’s splendid direction and choreography produce great musical theater while spoofing musical theater.
The show’s scenic and projection designs work together so brilliantly because they are by the same person, Paul Tate dePoo III. The settings are imposing, amusing, and effortlessly changed.
Jen Caprio’s costumes and Tom Watson’s wigs add to the fun in every setting—medieval England, Broadway, and even Scandinavia. Kai Harada and Haley Parcher’s sound and Cory Pattak’s lighting have lots of impressive effects. Musical director and conductor Jonathan Gorst leads the fine orchestra.
Two understudies fit seamlessly into the opening night cast. The excellent performers in major parts were:
- Ellis C. Dawson III as King Arthur (subbing for Major Attaway)
- Sean Bell as Sir Robin
- Chris Collins-Pisano as Sir Lancelot
- Graham Keen as Sir Bedevere (subbing for Ellis C. Dawson III)
- Leo Roberts as Sir Galahad
- Amanda Robles as the Lady of the Lake
- Blake Segal as Arthur’s servant Patsy
- Steven Telsey as the historian and Prince Herbert
“Monty Python’s Spamalot” continues through May 17 at the Fox Theatre, 527 North Grand Boulevard.
—Gerry Kowarsky
Photo by Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman
From the left: Leo Roberts as Sir Galahad and Amanda Robles as the Lady of the Lake in “Monty Python’s Spamalot.
