Review: Broadway tour of ‘Some Like It Hot’ sizzles at Minneapolis’ Orpheum Theatre

What a joyous riot.

The Broadway tour of “Some Like it Hot” landed Tuesday at Minneapolis’ Orpheum Theatre with its brassy peals of jazz, eruptive razzle-dazzle dancing and effortless pizzazz.

This story of Chicago gangsters in the Prohibition era chasing after a pair of musicians who witness mob murders offers loads of fanciful fun. From the orchestra, conducted brightly by Mark Binns, to the splendid cast fronted by blithely gifted Tavis Kordell and Matt Loehr, the “Hot” team earns its giddy keep.

The fun starts at the very beginning as Sweet Sue (Tarra Conner Jones), the no-nonsense motormouth manager of an all-female band, belts “What Are You Thirsty For” in a speakeasy that’s soon raided. She gets arrested for the drink offer but not before her powerful opening starts to arrest the audience.

“Hot” keeps us locked in until the surprisingly contemporary end.

The show’s clever tunes come courtesy of the “Hairspray” team of composer Marc Shaiman and co-lyricist Scott Wittman. They lean into the abandon and joy of jazz.

Based on Billy Wilder’s 1959 crime comedy, “Hot” offers a sterling example of how a classic property can be brought forward to speak thoughtfully to today. In the film, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon play the musicians who dress up as women and join an all-female band to escape the mob. But one of the disguised men falls in love with the lead singer, Sugar, played onscreen by Marilyn Monroe.

The book of the musical was updated by Amber Ruffin and Matthew Lopez, who won a Tony for “The Inheritance.” The action is still set in 1933 but the story winks in a myriad of ways at the contemporary audience. Ruffin and Lopez also shade the narrative to ultimately be a quest about getting comfortable in one’s true skin, even if that search takes us on a hilarious cross-dressing journey.

Director Casey Nicholaw, who won a Tony for choreographing the show’s bang-up numbers, stages “Hot” like he has been challenged to create a one-camera, single-take masterwork. The action flows with cinematic momentum and virtuosity, displaying theatrical lyricism and poetic stage invention. One quick example is a climactic chase scene that combines door-slamming farce with tap dance extravaganza.

Nicholaw elicits unqualified excellence from his cast. Looking like a lost sister of Serena Williams, Kordell makes Jerry/Daphne into a glamorous glamazon. And he and Loehr (Joe/Josephine) work well not just because they’re a Black/white, tall/short comic duo. Both have great timing, can tap vigorously and are expert at executing difficult dances while singing and showing incredible breath control.

Their bits often lapse into hilarity.

The gifts of Kordell and Loehr are just the start in “Hot.” Leandra Ellis-Gaston is fabulous as Sugar, bringing her own electricity and heat to the role.

Edward Juvier is similarly effective as Osgood, a white-shoe much-divorced heir who moves through the world with a big heart and a slight smile. His sense of pleasure is well-earned in a show that’s aptly named.

“Hot” is gorgeous and gratifying.

Where: Orpheum Theatre, 910 Hennepin Av. S., Mpls.

When: 7:30 p.m. Thu.-Fri., 2 & 7:30 p.m. Sat., 1 & 6:30 p.m. Sun. Ends Oct. 20.

Tickets: $40-$145. Hennepinarts.org.