‘Forever Plaid’ Pulls Nostalgic Harmonies Out Of Closet

“Forever Plaid” Thursday, July 22, Coeur d’Alene Summer Theatre

You’ll be glad you went “Plaid.”

“Forever Plaid” is a funny, warm and affectionate look at a style of music - the well-scrubbed, four-part male harmony genre - that had its decade in the spotlight from about 1954 to 1964.

This is the music of the Four Lads, the Four Preps, the Four Freshmen, the Four Just-About-Anything. In the hands of four fine performers from the Coeur d’Alene Summer Theatre, this music comes alive again.

Stuart Ross, the original creator of “Forever Plaid,” made several smart decisions in putting together this show, but by far his biggest inspiration was simply in recognizing: This music may be forgotten, but not because it’s bad.

The genre vanished due to forces beyond its control. Ross cleverly symbolizes these forces in the opening sequence, when we learn that the feisty young singing group The Plaids were tragically killed in a collision with a bus full of Catholic schoolgirls on the way to: The Beatles’ 1964 appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show.

This appearance not only killed The Plaids, but it murdered the genre. From that point on, high school proms did not feature songs like “Moments to Remember.” They featured songs like “Twist and Shout” and “She Loves You,” and before long, “Purple Haze.” One of the best sequences in this production, and certainly the most telling, comes when The Plaids gamely attempt their own rendition of the Beatles’ “She Loves You,” which includes the chorus, “She loves you, yes-sirreeebob!”

Case closed on why the music failed to survive the mid-‘60s.

But “Forever Plaid” makes an excellent case for why the music deserved a better fate. In smooth versions of “Magic Moments,” “Rags to Riches,” “Perfidia,” “Shangri-La” and “Three Coins in the Fountain,” we remember once again how fine the melodies were, how gentle and romantic the sensibilities, and how easy the harmonies were on the ears.

It helps that all four cast members are fine singers. Special mention goes to Brian Maples, as Jinx, with his pure, high, well-practiced tenor.

All four are also talented comic actors, vital in a show like this, which has plenty of story and character development between songs.

Steven Dahlke is spunky and hilarious as the gum-popping Sparky. Mark Cotter is the big man with the big bass voice, and Alex Bernhardt is the ambitious young leader, Francis, who has all of the lovable nerdishness of Charles Martin Smith in “American Graffiti.” Maples is the shy one, prone to nosebleeds.

Director-choreographer Bob Sembiante does a flawless job of keeping the evening moving, of using the entire stage (and even the auditorium) and especially of keeping the correct balance between camp and nostalgia. The show makes fun of The Plaids and their music, but only gentle, warm fun.

Sembiante’s job is made easier by the fact that Ross cleverly includes a lot of variety in the show. Besides the four-part harmony showcases, we see a Calypso sequence, a tribute to Perry Como, an “Ed Sullivan” parody and, best of all, a brilliant medley of “16 Tons” and “Chain Gang.”

The show is set up as celestial reprieve. God has granted The Plaids one final concert to take the place of the one they missed on that fateful night in 1964. Based on this production, the four lads have easily earned their way back into heaven. “Forever Plaid” continues through Saturday. Call 1-800-4-CDATIX for tickets.