Jekyll and Hyde sing about good and evil

“Jekyll & Hyde”

June 14-26

Directed by… “Jekyll & Hyde”

June 14-26

Directed by Robert Cuccioli

Benedum Center

Tickets start at $26.75

412-456-6666 or

pittsburghCLO.org

The fight between good and evil hasn’t changed much since Robert Louis Stevenson penned his novella “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” in 1886. Humanity’s struggle with the dichotomy transcends time, becoming as relevant now as it was more than a century ago.

Now audiences in Pittsburgh can witness the relevance of Stevenson’s story when Pittsburgh CLO performs the musical “Jekyll & Hyde,” written in 1990, a century after the publication of the book, this summer at the Benedum Center.

The story revolves around Dr. Henry Jekyll as he conducts his experiments in Victorian London, examining the dichotomy of good and evil in the human constitution. But Jekyll’s experiments go awry, and he becomes the animalistic Mr. Hyde.

The show is directed by Robert Cuccioli, who played the role of Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde during the show’s original stint on Broadway, and features Kevin Gray taking Cuccioli’s role as the male lead.

Actors say that one of the most important elements of the show is its adherence to the original text, particular character development.

“It’s been really great getting to work with Bob Cuccioli, and just hearing what he has to say about the characters,” ensemble member Michael Campayno said. “Because it’s not really just an ensemble, it’s kind of us creating these people, this lower-class society in London, and it’s not general at all.”

It’s that attention to detail coupled with a continually universal story of good and evil and a thrilling score that the cast believes will draw the crowds in.

Steve Cuden, one of the 1990 play’s original writers, explained what he feels draws audiences and readers to this story. His version includes romantic entanglements, Jekyll and Emma and Hyde and Lucy, that were not present in the book.

“It’s a classic story of good versus evil, and it’s a classic love story, and audiences always respond to this dichotomy of good and evil and how it plays out in this love relationship between Jekyll and Emma and Hyde and Lucy,” he said.

Cuden said Stevenson’s novella was one of the first pieces of literature to examine this basic human dichotomy — to quote the play, “the fine line between a good man and a bad man.”

“[The audience] get supercharged by the notions of what happens to a person, an individual when the worst of them is let loose,” Cuden said. “‘Jekyll & Hyde’ is a big, bold reflection of how that works, and I think audiences are drawn to that by and large because of its psychological nature.”

The show asks its audience members not only to question the line between good and evil in themselves, but also to examine it in the world around them. The element of questioning, whether it be of oneself or society, is one of the reasons the story has remained so relevant. It’s what many of the people involved in the production believe will keep audiences coming back year after year.

Brynn O’Malley, the actress portraying Emma, Dr. Jekyll’s fiancé, finds the themes to be enduring ones.

“Most of the themes that are addressed in the show are very relevant today. It’s obviously about good versus evil, freedom versus restraint, order versus chaos, but also science versus religion, in a way — not so much at the forefront, but sort of an underlying current, you know? What of our soul is in control, and what is the soul, and do we have control over it?” she said.