‘Reefer’s’ high wears off too soon

"Reefer Madness: The Musical" is no more an endorsement for marijuana than "Cannibal! The Musical" is an encouragement for eating thy neighbor.

The original "Reefer Madness," shot in 1936 by a church group, was meant as a very serious warning about the evils of pot. A good hunk of America took this extremist view seriously. It’s not the drug but the extremist view that Atlas Theatre/College of Southern Nevada’s Performing Arts Center’s "Reefer Madness: The Musical" is kidding.

Directors Chris Mayse and Will Lundt have draped the stage in the American flag, and our narrator (Joe Hynes) is a frightening symbol of unquestioning authority: a school official dressed in black; short, wet hair; unsmiling; and forever with some kind of portfolio in his hand from which he consults.

With the help of the local drama troupe, he tells the story of the wholesome 16-year old Jimmy (Drew Yonemori) who comes under the influence. For openers, he takes one puff and is suddenly involved in a bisexual orgy (tastefully danced, of course).

The script is a one-note joke, and while that joke is pretty funny — and is punched up by a series of tongue-in-cheek songs mostly well-staged by Jenna Wurtzberger — the show wears out its welcome way too soon. By the time we get to the obligatory body-parts eating stuff, we’re way too high on boredom to laugh.

But its exuberant cast gives the production charm it doesn’t deserve.

Yonemori not only looks 16 (he’s nowhere near) but gives off the right kind of goofy but sincere naiveté.

Amanda Kraft — as his blonde, Shirley Temple-curled devoted girlfriend — sings with the purity of a 1930s ingénue. Yet, when she makes up her mind to circle the globe to rescue her boyfriend from the "slippery slopes of hell," you believe Kraft has the inner strength to follow through.

And Hynes is such a straight-faced no-nonsense authoritarian, that I wouldn’t be surprised if he winds up converting some of the audience.

The ensemble numbers heighten the musical excitement, and the five-member band, high above the stage, adds to the show’s intimate feel.

The directors might have helped by pulling back on some of the playing style, so that it didn’t become so repetitive. But I don’t know that I’ve ever seen at CSN a musical that makes so much good use of a small space. "Reefer" may be no classic, but it’s worth a hit or two.

Anthony Del Valle can be reached at DelValle@aol.com. You can write him c/o Las Vegas Review-Journal, P.O. Box 70, Las Vegas, NV 89125.