Rock Me Amadeus
Las Vegas Weekly
Molly O’Donnell
March 28, 2015
There’s a reason why Peter Shaffer’s 1984 film version of his drama Amadeus won eight
Academy Awards, including Best Picture: It, like the play it’s based on, is an epic story of
genius, jealousy, and revenge. At its best, the play uses vivid characterization and dialogue to
bring to life historical figures most of us think of as static. The fact that the hugely famous
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is the work’s main subject doesn’t hurt, either. But a good play does
not necessarily mean a good show. Fortunately, the Las Vegas Little Theatre’s current main
stage production of Amadeus does eminent justice to the script with wonderful acting, directing,
sound, and lighting.
Even if you’ve forgotten the details of Amadeus (it has been 30-plus years), it’s impossible not to
remember the narrator. The tale is told retrospectively from the position of the now-old Antonio
Salieri. Salieri recognizes Mozart’s genius almost immediately and, in a fit of jealousy, swears to
his personal god to do everything he can to defeat him, from driving him into poverty to
attempting to sleep with his wife. Salieri’s character is what the whole play hinges on, and Glenn
Heath gives an astonishing performance in this role, a fact made more impressive because in the
theatrical presentation the envious composer never leaves the stage. Even in the midst of
costume changes that take him from old man to young and back again, Heath remains there,
flawlessly directing our attention to aspects of the events he narrates. Heath’s superb schemer is
also perfectly counterbalanced by Michael Blair’s Mozart, a precocious, silly, innocent who the
audience can both feel annoyed by and pity. The entire cast must have had excellent direction
from Walter Niejadlik in order to strike this balance. Impressively throwing around lines in three
languages, they do a service to great material.
But in a play about music and musicians, great acting and direction can’t account for everything.
The sound has to be exquisite. Happily, here, the excellent sound is only bested by the artistry of
the lighting—think light that at times successfully serves as a kind of shorthand for moonlight
and madness. All these elements played together create a harmony, with only one discordant
note: costuming (springing for short pants is always preferable to pinning long ones, for
instance). These kinds of problems are foreseeable for a period piece on a budget, though. And
this minor distraction has to be overlooked in a production that brings to life the men behind
some of the most enduring and beautiful music in our history.
Five stars