When Ryan Flynn first saw “Reefer Madness, The Musical,” he knew it was a show he wanted to direct.
“I loved it. I think it’s hysterical,” said Flynn, who is directing the musical opening Feb. 18 at Joliet’s Bicentennial Park and Theatre. The Joliet Drama Guild is producing the musical, which runs weekends through Feb. 27.
Showtimes are at 7 p.m. Feb. 18-19 and 25-26; 2 p.m. Feb. 20 and 27.
“It has amazing songs and amazing characters. It’s a hilarious ride to take, to sit down and see this over-the-top cautionary tale that’s completely ridiculous and rooted in another time,” Flynn said.
The musical, which contains adult themes and some gun shots, is suitable for ages 13 and above, Flynn said.
“Reefer Madness, The Musical,” is a spoof on a propaganda film commissioned in 1936 by a church group to discuss the dangers of marijuana and its effects on youth. The original film was meant to relay that marijuana leads to violence and often ends in insanity.
“It was over the top and so exaggerated and extreme,” Flynn said. “It became a cult classic.” In 1998, it was adapted to a spoof musical on Broadway. It went off Broadway a few years later around the time of the Sept. 11 attacks, and it shut down after a short run.
In 2005, it was made into a movie.
One of the things Flynn loves about the musical is the music itself.
“It’s a jazzy rocky score,” Flynn said. “Throughout the show, there are influences of classic Broadway and then it moves into rock and funk for the reefer scenes. There’s also a slow jazzy song that Mae, who runs a reefer den or house of ill repute, sings.”
Flynn is approaching the musical as “an extreme comedy,” he said.
“One of the ways to describe the show is that it’s a ‘Saturday Night Live’ skit with music,” he said. “It’s a show for you to come in and throw your cares away and have a good time hearing great songs and seeing fun dancing, and getting caught up in the extreme melodrama of the show.”
The show begins with two all-American high school students, Jimmy and Mary, who are studying, “Romeo and Juliet.”
“They’re so enthralled with the story and their budding love. They sing that they want to be just like Romeo and Juliet. It’s almost like an old-school Rodgers and Hammerstein-type song,” Flynn said.
“Across town, there’s the evil reefer den. A reefer trollop there named Sally seduces the young boys that come in.”
The musical was written for a small cast with actors doing multiple parts. Flynn has cast 18 actors.
The set will be in all black-and-white to accentuate the feel of a 1930s-era movie. “It gives it an exaggerated tone, a cartoonish feel,” Flynn said. “Pops of color will come from the actors in the clothes they wear.
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“A huge part of the show really delves into the morals of that time period,” Flynn said. “For example, in the 1930s women were told to stay in their places and not ask questions. When sweet, innocent Mary is exposed to reefer, she gets outspoken and a little wild.”
Though the show has been deemed risqué, Flynn said he’s toned down some of the racier parts. Some productions have had partial nudity, but there won’t be any of that in this production, Flynn said.
“There will be a decent amount of sound effects throughout the show. The most jarring would be gun shots.” There’s also onstage violence toward the end of the show, he added.
“This is more of a niche show and doesn’t get produced that often,” Flynn said. “But it is a great show. That’s a reason Joliet and surrounding areas shouldn’t miss it. It may not come around again for a long while.”
‘Reefer Madness, The Musical’
Where: Bicentennial Park and Theatre, 201 W. Jefferson St., Joliet
When: Weekends Feb. 18 to 27
Tickets: $18-$20
Information: 815-715-8881, thejolietdramaguild.com
Sheryl DeVore is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.