On paper, “Kimberly Akimbo” is the type of thing that shouldn’t really work.
The Tony-award winning musical, which features music by Jeanine Tesori and lyrics and a book by David Lindsay-Abaire, follows a girl named Kimberly Levaco who suffers from a condition that causes her to age at a far more rapid pace than usual, giving her the appearance of an elderly woman at the ripe old age of 15. There’s also a show choir full of horny teens, terrible parents, and a criminal aunt who spends her time scamming old ladies with dementia out of their money.
“Kimberly Akimbo” has a fine line to walk, navigating a tricky balance of humor and tragedy. The show, which is playing at the Fox Theatre through Oct. 19, doesn’t always nail that balance. But this particular production features excellent performances that smooth out most of those kinks, proving that when the show falls into the right hands, it can move past the page.
We first meet Kimberly (Ann Morrison) as the new kid in Bergen County, New Jersey. Despite her condition, she deals with things that every teenager does – namely, a crush on the awkwardly adorable, tuba-playing Seth Weetis (a lovable Miguel Gil). But she also has problems outside of the scope of normal teenagedom. Her dad Buddy (Jim Hogan) is an alcoholic. Her mother Pattie (Laura Woyasz) is pregnant and a narcissist, openly talking about how she hopes this child will be “normal.” And the average life expectancy for someone with Kimberly’s condition is 16 – which, at the start of the musical, is only a few days away.
The particular stresses of Kimberly’s home life become more clear throughout the course of the show, dolled out in catchy musical numbers. It’s not Tesori’s best work, but the entire cast are knockouts vocally, and there are times when Tesori shows off her ability to make a musical moment soar. One example of this is the song “Father Time,” sung by Pattie as she contemplates the inevitable death of one daughter and the birth of another, the complexities of those feelings wrapped up in the music and Woyasz’s performance
The most showstopping number, however, is “Better,” a jazzy, gospel-esque song sung by Debra (Emily Koch), Kimberly’s crime-loving aunt as she tries to convince Kimberly and her friends that they should do whatever they can – no matter how immoral – to make their lives better. When Debra shows up, “Kimberly Akimbo” really snaps into place tonally. Koch has marvelous vocal chops and impeccable comic timing. Most importantly, she’s able to balance the amorality and cynicism of the character with that humor, and the show follows her lead, particularly in the first act.
The second act of “Kimberly Akimbo” mostly maintains that highwire balancing act, but it does feel a little rushed, which gives Kimberly’s parents – the toughest characters in the musical – less time to breathe than they probably need. In the first act, the way Kimberly’s parents conduct themselves is appalling. But there are moments – in “Father Time,” and again in Buddy’s solo number “Happy For Her” – where, even if you don’t agree with Pattie or Buddy’s actions, you can at least feel the toll that watching their daughter live this way has taken on them. But in the second act, the story rushes through a monumental, terrible choice on their part, all but erasing that complexity they had in the first act.
But, despite these few creaky moments , “Kimberly Akimbo” is able to maintain an impossible sort of sweetness throughout, mainly due to the optimism of the character and the general sensitivity with which the story treats teenagers. There are no “popular kids” or bullies in “Kimberly Akimbo” – just show choir nerds, a band geek, and a girl with a terrible disease, all trying to navigate their way through life. While Kimberly is obviously going through a little more than the average teenager, the show doesn’t belittle those average teenage problems, whether they be embarrassing yourself in front of your crush or wearing suspenders to school.
At one point, Kimberly describes one of Aunt Debra’s hairbrained schemes as “scary, fun, and really stupid.” To be clear, she’s talking about washing checks – but this is also a pretty great encapsulation of life itself and all its peculiarities. For all its small faults, “Kimberly Akimbo” will have you leaving the theater levitating on the truth of that statement and itching to live life to the fullest – stupid moments and all.