A thorough journey through ‘60s and ‘70s music, Light My Fire indeed rekindles memories for the majority of Florida Studio Theater audiences and enlightens those younger. All seem to respond to a trio who act out lyrics while singing in the styles of major performers of the times and sometimes even kidding them. In Act I’s re-creation of the first era that abandoned simple romanticism, the singers jump as if “Born to Be Wild” and are soon doing “The Twist.” A new generation obviously welcomes the music of various Brits, the Beachboys, and The Beatles (Seth Eliser’s favorites). Rock ’n Roll is celebrated in “Surfin’ USA” and “She Loves You”—Yah, Yah, Yah—involving both Seth and Dale Obermark, whereas Alayna Gallo dominates with shouting songs about having fun and loving. The funniest number has Alayna and Seth engulfed in straight black hair—she imitating Cher and he as Sonny Bono cringing at her side, trying to but not equaling her height in rendering “I Got You Babe”. All three singers, centered by Alayna’s power, order “Light My Fire,” beautifully illuminated byThomas Korp’s fiery lighting of the curtained rear of the stage. “Summer in the City” shows off good guitarist Dale Obermark’s soaring voice. Off center but onstage instrumentalists Jim Prosser and Marcus James with their dark shirts and caps help signify the era. They neatly seem to enclose and draw attention to the male singers’ psychedelic colored and patterned shirts. Even though Act I begins to fade with “The Times They Are A-Changin’”, the costumes—including Alayna’s multi-bold-colored jump suit with black midriff binding—don’t change. That means they don’t mirror the title of “Hazy Shade of Winter” going toward Intermission. Act II’s text and projections highlight late ‘60s into the ‘70s changes in literature and the arts along with movements involving Civil Rights, Feminism, the Viet Nam war, and Personal Freedoms and Revolution—like Woodstock’s—in Sexual Mores. Projected are authentic era photographs. Beatles’ songs still predominate, from “With a Little Help from My Friends” and “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds” (well illustrated) to a final “All You Need Is Love.” In between, Alayna Gallo scores representing Grace Slick and Janice Joplin. The guys “Paint in Black” like Mick Jagger. Marvin Gaye, James Brown, Peter Townshend, and even Bob Dylan’s music get a turn. Director Catherine Randazzo puts her well developed brand on the organization of all the performers. Everyone seems comfortable with Richard and Rebecca Hopkins’s script even when detailing things that happened in eras they didn’t live through. But most of the audience I was in knew when to clap to points made in script and song as well as how to give the whole show appreciable applause.
