Death Becomes Her!

 

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Death Becomes Her closed-on Broadway in May of 2026 and started a national tour in September. Omaha is the third city on the bill (after Cleveland and St Louis) and opening night was last night. Death Becomes Her is a musical based on the 1992 Meryl Streep/Goldie Hawn/Bruce Willis movie where two competing "friends" duel, steal each other's men, and try and kill each other. 

Jackie Burns, who set a record for number of appearances as Elpheba in Wicked, heads the cast as Madeline Ashton, a fading movie star obsessed with her looks. Kristen Beth Williams is Helen Sharp, a writer and best "friend" of Madeline who is used and abused by her "friend". Ken Marino is Dr Ernest Menville, an altruistic plastic surgeon who fixes children's cleft palates and reconstructs burn victims. Dr Ernie is Helen's fiancé' and is stolen by Madeline from Helen as a kind of game. Dr Ernie turns into a greedy plastic surgeon in Beverly Hills under the influence of Madeline the narcissist. All the while there's Nasia Thomas as Viola Van Horn, a kind of voodoo practicing witch with a potion that stops aging and death. Well of course Madeline needs that to keep her career intact. Meanwhile, Helen resides in a mental hospital, babbling about Madeline, and escapes. Turns out she drank the potion too and their attempts to kill each other backfire. Amazing special effects, more like magic tricks, occur onstage after they both are "murdered". They eventually bond again after they have faked their deaths.

The performances are spot on. Jackie Burns you can see as Elphaba, the voice is there, Kristen Beth Williams is a perfect foil. She can really sing and is a great physical comedian. Ken Marino as Dr Ernie shines in Act 2 in a manic solo song, the Plan, in which he sounds like a conspiracy nut trying to keep the women's secret a secret. Marino may look familiar to you as he was in, We're the Millers, Brooklyn 99 and The Other Two. He is a talented actor/singer and comedic actor. Nasia Thomas makes such a strong presence onstage as Viola Van Horn, and it makes you wonder how she's not a huge star. She dominates the stage on her few appearances. 

A couple of minor characters also shine. Michael Buchanan as Stefan, Madeline's long-suffering assistant, gets his own solo in Act 2. He's a very Bowen Yang type and I wanted more of him. Louis Williams is Viola's assistant, Chagal, and he's impossible to take your eyes off when he's out there.

The story is campy, the jokes are campy, the pratfalls are campy and the audience plays right along. Lots of applause, laughter and cheers for the local shoutouts. I laughed a lot and never got bored. The humor is dark, risqué', sarcastic and not for kids. Right up my alley.

Sometimes these plays exceed expectations. Death Becomes Her did exactly that.

Go see it. It's here till Sunday.

PS....the sound at the Orpheum was fantastic for once. The sound crew for the play? They deserve a standing O.