"Rock of Ages" at ACT of Connecticut is "Nothin' but a Good Time"

The book for “Rock of Ages” was written by Chris D’Arienzo, with spectacular arrangement and orchestrations by Ethan Popp. The insanely talented musicians in the onstage band are absolutely one of the best aspects of the ACT production of this wonderfully fun show.

At its heart, this show is all about the classic rock hits by bands like Styx, Foreigner, REO Speedwagon, Starship, Bon Jovi and my personal favorite, Journey (“Don’t Stop Believin’.”) The music credits in the program fill an entire page in tiny type. At ACT, the choreography by Sara Brians brings the music to the next level.

Dennis J. Arcano, who has been involved in every production at this venue, once again served as the music contractor and synthesizer programmer for the show, and sits on the stage in costume slaying the drums and percussion. Conductor Jeff Cox plays keyboard, Miles Aubrey gets to step forward a few times on lead guitar, with John Tuohy beautifully covering most of the acoustic guitar– Dale Obermark as Drew plays all of his own acoustic parts. Chris Bonner plays electric bass. The entire band has a few lines and reactions to perform in addition to making the score sound amazing.

Abigail Sparrow shines in every way in her performance as small-town girl Sherrie in her ACT debut. She is a great singer that convincingly portrays her earnest character that is entangled in the requisite love story.

New York City based actor/musician Obermark plays the aspiring rock star (if romantically clueless) Drew and does well with both aspects of his performance.

The very talented Equity actor Shaylen Harger returns to this stage to make the most of the role of protest leader Regina, and I was reminded that I had seen this WestConn graduate in “Jesus Christ Superstar” at Connecticut Repertory Theatre before the pandemic. Equity member Liam Fennecken is perfectly cast in the role of Lonny, the “dramatic conjurer” of the tale who often breaks the fourth wall. The actor gives such a high energy performance that I wish I had seen him as Dewey Finn in the national tour of “School of Rock.”

Elizabeth Adabale singing stands out in her role as Justice and Eric Coles, who appeared in “Rock of Ages” on Broadway, plays the sex-machine rock star Stacee Jaxx.

Equity member Kevin Dennis is Hertz, and Sean Widener is a delight as his flamboyant son Franz. Justin Michael Duval is lovable as Bourbon Room owner Dennis and a shout out to Emily Ann Stys as “Waitress #1.”

The lighting design by Jose Santiago could not be more effective, whether highlighting a hard rock production number or lovingly setting the mood for a love scene. Kudos to this New York City based lighting designer on a job very well done, and do not forget to crack your glow stick (distributed during intermission) for the final numbers.

Sound design by Don Hanna and Alex Berg was loud but thankfully never blasted the ears. There were a few spots where I was not able to make out the various lines in mashed up numbers, but overall it worked well.

Eighties costumes and wigs designed by Kurt Alger firmly bring us to the era with the requisite neon leg warmer and big hair, although one of the guys in the ensemble had a wig that was really bad, perhaps intentionally so. I loved the decorated short jacket that Sherrie donned for her final scenes. The scenic design by Kyle Dixon manages not to overwhelm the tight space of a seedy rock bar that is made a bit smaller to accommodate the platform for the live musicians.

I loved every minute of this show. It runs 2.5 hours with one intermission and continues through March 19. There is some strong language and adult situations, as well as theatrical strobe, and water-based haze and fog. The theater is located at 36 Old Quarry Road in Ridgefield.

Nancy Sasso Janis is a member of the Connecticut Critics Circle (ctcritics.org) and loves eighties rock.

All photos courtesy of ACT of CT