the simply new theatre, inc.

It was a night that happens often on Broadway. Yet Syracuse rarely turns up a production of power, passion and performances that make audiences want to hustle to the nearest cafe to dissect the show while sipping a drink.

Exactly that happened Friday night at the Central New York premiere of "Chess: The Musical" in the Civic Center's Carrier Theatre. It is all the more remarkable since the producing unit is Simply New Theatre, which hasn't mounted a show in 15 years.

But producer Thomas Michael Quinn and director John A. Nara have unleashed a dynamite show. They have culled almost all of the cream of the crop to perform, a full orchestra to back them up, and Nara's staging is sizzling. It extended down to the superb musical direction of Jon Balcourt, the useful unit set of Karel Blakeley, the quicksilver choreography of Shannon Tompkins and the clever lighting of John Czajkowski in tandem with Blakeley. The milieu is the 1986 world chess championship in Budapest, Hungary. The top contenders are the current champion, Anatoly, a Russian who lives only for the game, and the challenger, Freddie, whose ego is gigantic and who savors the attention of the press and the public. He is tended by his second, Florence, a fine player in her own right, but who has become cynical as her affair with Freddie dwindled.

The Cold War is on the wane, but soon it is apparent that treachery still lurks behind the new facade of camaraderie. It is fascinating to learn no one is who they seem to be as the show unfolds and to learn that East can meet West on the romantic playing field.

There is not a flaw in the Florence of Dani Gottuso. Casey Ryan perfectly embodies Freddie, and Dana Sovocool is sensational as Anatoly. It is as if they were born to play these characters.

But the supporting cast also does yeoman work, notably Brian Pringle as the champ's guard and Josh Mele as the challenger's mouthy, grasping agent.

Although it was a smash hit in London, it failed on Broadway. Certainly, it was not the fault of the Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus score or the Tim Rice lyrics, which are properly impassioned. Perhaps, it was the era in which it was staged, when people hoped wars were over. We know now that is a futile hope and are ready to accept the political ramifications of "Chess: The Musical."