by John Garcia of John Garcia's The Column

Legally Blonde is funny, peppy, and does get the job done, which is just to entertain and make you laugh.

Do blondes really have more fun? I really don't know since I belong to the sector of raven-haired citizens. I did, though, wear a blonde wig once for a musical I was in. I didn't see any dramatic change or difference. But then again I was also wearing a one-piece purple bathing suit and having all my "candy" duct-taped, twisted, and hidden in ways I wish not to discuss here.

Needless to say being a blonde only got me an empty dance card and the ability to hit higher tenor notes thanks to all that duct tape. But I digress.

Right now over at the Music Hall at Fair Park, there are infinite rows of sorority girls squealing and screaming with ear bleeding excitement. Why? No, Tiffany did not finally get pinned. No, Jessica's pregnancy test did not come back negative. No, the new Prada fall ostrich purses did not come in. And no, Daddy did not give them a new American Express card with an unlimited balance to use. It's because their favorite movie turned musical has reached Dallas -- Legally Blonde the Musical.

LB is based on the movie by the same name that was released in 2001 starring Reese Witherspoon. She was "Elle Woods," the perky blonde with great fashion sense who is president of her sorority and thinks she's going to get engaged to her beau, Warner. But sadly it does not happen. Warner is molded after the Kennedys (a political career), and he needs a wife that is more Jackie Onassis than Marilyn Monroe. But Elle gets her revenge by following her man to Harvard Law School (she actually got accepted!) to prove she has the book smarts and the best Versace to parade the campus halls. Resulting in a belly laugh full of events ensues.

The film was a super hit for Witherspoon at the box office, so much so a 2003 sequel was made (Legally Blonde 2: Red, White, and Blonde ) that never matched the original.

On April 29, 2007 at the Palace Theater, the musical version of this film opened starring Laura Bell Bundy in a star-turning performance, earning her a deserving Tony nomination for Best Actress in a Musical.

I actually saw the Broadway production in May, just a week after it opened to mixed, if decent reviews from the New York press. There was so much pink on the stage, in the audience, and in the lobby, I thought I was in the swimming in the stomach of the Pink Panther.

I must admit, I was not that thrilled with the musical score by Laurence O'Keefe and Neil Benjamin. Some songs worked, but others just seem to go nowhere, at times sounding unstimulating. Some songs really did not provide durable, satisfying character development, plot progression, or internal subtext. Instead, some songs came off like lifeless, vapid music filler to get us to the next scene.

Both composers also wrote the lyrics, which created another problem at times. Several songs had witty, topical, and at times snappy funny lyrics. But when it came to shuck away the superficial, outlandish characterizations and quirks to get to the emotional center, alas, the lyrics failed miserably here.

Heather Hach's book does do a somewhat satisfactory job, but does it expand or elevate the material? No, not really. But we're not talking about the musical version of, say, Revolutionary Road or The Pianist here either.

Legally Blonde is a pink, fluffy, cotton candy treat musical that you just have to sit back and enjoy. It isn't a powerful, emotional piece of musical theater. It's there for fun and laughs, and that's what it achieves.

What made me thoroughly enjoy the Broadway production was the razor sharp direction and dynamic choreography of Jerry Mitchell and the performances of the original cast.

Ms. Bundy created her own non-Witherspoon version of "Elle," and you immediately fell in love with her. A golden hair beauty with triple threat talents. Surrounding her was the magnificent Orfeh (as "Paulette"); Nikki Snelson (as "Brooke Wyndham"); Richard Blake (as "Warner") and Andy Karl (as the UPS delivery stud, "Kyle"). The only miscast in the Broadway version was Christian Borle as Elle's love interest, "Emmett."

The Broadway version had an eye-popping, first class company of jaw-dropping ensemble members who worked overtime in achieving super laughs and thunderous applause for their never-ending energetic dancing, singing, and acting.

At the 2007 Tony awards, the musical received 7 nominations, but not for Best Musical. That year the nominees were Mary Poppins, Grey Gardens, Curtains, and Spring Awakening (which won).

Rumors fluttered through Broadway that it was Curtains who robbed LB for that final slot.

Last night would be my second visit to Delta Nu and follow the journey of this blonde sorority gal who thinks she's looking for Mr. Right, only to find herself in the process. How would this version turn out after having seen the original Broadway production? Let's see!

If you saw the original Broadway production or the telecast of the musical on MTV, get ready for a startling surprise. Visually, the scenic design has been watered down considerably. This is a bit perplexing what with this being the first national tour of a recent Broadway musical.

Take the opening number alone. On Broadway it started with a great wall/backdrop of Delta Nu sorority house, whereupon the girls pop out from the upstairs windows to begin "Omigod You Guys," which then disappears to reveal a long, glistening white staircase leading to Elle's room. There is also a long walkway attached to it, and the entrance doors to the sorority house are beneath Ellie's room on the ground floor. That's all gone.

There was a funny moment when one of the girls is in a bath towel, wearing a face mask of green goo, she screams, slides down the pole, and poof! She's all dolled up and ready to go! For the tour, that is all gone.

Now we have this shabby, ugly banner (hanging crooked) saying "Congrats Elle" and a tiny column table all to resemble the Delta Nu home. Stage right is a door that now belongs to Elle's room.

I was really shocked on how miniscule, shabby, and bare the stage looked without the really spiffy and festive scenic design that was used for the original production but not for the tour.

On Broadway, Elle's first entrance was rising from beneath the Palace theater floor straight into the dress boutique she is at. That's gone here too.

I totally understand that for a tour, several great technical elements could not be used, such as the scenery moving all electronically around the stage or the use of elevators like at the Palace. But jeez, they were able to fly Elphaba and even that car in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang recently. So why there was not more "technical magic" used here is a bit odd.

Major sections of scenery were altered and toned down. Paula's hair salon, The Hair Affair, had missing walls; Harvard no longer had the other buildings or the backdrop of the school; Elle's room was smaller, less elaborate (thereby killing a great comic sequence involving the seasons changing); and the walls for one room in Harvard (for "So Much Better") is now a flimsy backdrop.

Last night the first part of the act was a tad abnormal. The energy seemed sluggish, slow, and dimmed. That opening number should be squealing, hyped-up girls on Red Bull shrieking with delight on Elle's engagement. But it just wasn't there. Their diction was swallowed and slurred, and even the tempo of the music seemed to slow down than from what I remember. However, Act Two was much, much better and the cast seem to return with the right amount of energy and pizzazz.

"Elle Woods" is portrayed on this tour by Becky Gulsvig. I have seemed to notice that, of late, the creators of many recently new musicals on Broadway tend to fix, adjust, and mold the character to the specific, unique talents of the original performer. This can hinder and hurt those who follow because their talents are different and may not be the same as the original.

That is the case with Ms. Gulsvig. She's a beautiful girl, that's for sure. But she just lacked that POW, electrifying stage presence that Laura Bell Bundy, the original "Elle," had. Her energy was lower, and her comedic timing seemed to have a few hiccups as the evening progressed.

I could be wrong here, but it looked like the choreography was adjusted to fit Ms. Gulsvig's limitations as a dancer. In the original Bundy danced up a storm in the big show stopper "What You Want." It was an amalgamation of hip hop, jazz, and even tap, all wrapped up in a prolonged dance number that brought the house down at the Palace. Last night it seemed shorter, and Gulsvig could barely keep up with the ensemble.

On the MTV reality show last season in which they showed the casting process of a new "Elle," they did a whole episode on how anyone playing "Elle" had to hit this big, belting ending note of "So Much Better." The judges drilled it into the contestants on how much this ending note had to be a show stopper to end Act One like firecrackers. Thus it was surprising that Ms. Gulsvig did not sustain that big, soaring note with a powerful belt. Instead she cut the note off early.

Thankfully, in the second act she rose to the occasion. She finally got in sync with the comedic elements of the character and delivered a very enjoyable, funny performance. Her second act comedy was right on the money, delivering the loud laughs that the character needed. She also handled the love story with sweet charm and believability.

Natalie Joy Johnson portrays "Paulette," owner of a hair salon who misses her dog very much and has bad luck with men. But thanks to Elle and her "Bend & Snap" technique, she finds love. Ms. Johnson is highly enjoyable in the role.

Brian Patrick Murphy as "Kyle" the UPS delivery guy gives a scene-stealing performance, and he doesn't even appear until the second act! His first exit alone resulted in loud screams and applause. He provided just the right amount of manly swagger and sweet charm that swooned many a heart in the audience. No wonder Paulette fell for him!

The funniest performances of the night were provided by Kyle Brown as "Carlos" and Adam Zelasko as "Nikos," the two European men who are hysterical in the courtroom scene. Okay, so they are flamboyant, over the top. But it was just hilarious they way they both played off each other and just had this devil-may-care attitude on what the audience might think of them. Their comedic talents were splendid here and added some much needed laughter in the production.

Funny side note: When they finished their song, they kissed. The audience roared in clamorous applause and laughter. However, the elderly couple that was sitting directly in front of me sat there frozen in shock, resembling those statues in the hall of Presidents attraction at Disney world. Come on, times have changed -- catch up Ma & Pa Kettle!

Providing the best and most entertaining performance of the entire production for me was D.B. Bonds as "Emmett Forrest" (the Luke Wilson role in the movie). He added some much desired energy and laughs in the first act that were lacking from others on the stage. His facial expressions, comedic timing, pace, and delivery consistently resulted in robust laughter from the audience. Bonds' tenor voice had a smooth, crystal clean pop quality that made many of his solos glisten and glow. He was just exceptional in this production, and was eons better than Christian Borle who originated the role on Broadway.

On a personal note: Last night sitting behind my guest and I were two young, rich looking couples with cocktails in their hands. Dressed to the nines. Throughout the entire first act they talked loudly, made constant comments about the show, the sets, costumes, lines, etc. over and over again. Never once shutting up. I would turn and give them a look of distaste, hoping they would shut their traps. It was not just a comment here and there. No, it was a diarrhea of endless commentary (including foul language) that never died. It actually made me less enjoy the first act because of their rude, rude behavior. Are rich people really that selfish? I mean they showed no regard for the other audience members all around them.

At intermission, I asked the strangers sitting next to us during intermission if they felt the same, and they were furious on how they would not shut up. So we were not alone feeling this way.

When the second act started, I looked up and saw that all four of them had freshly new cocktails in their hands. So I grabbed my guest and actually went a couple of rows further down the aisle. I was not about to deal with that inconsiderate behavior for a whole other act.

If you never saw the Broadway version or the MTV telecast, I strongly feel you will thoroughly have a blast attending Legally Blonde, I really do. The girls around me and leaving the theater were squealing with delight and reciting the lyrics with relish excitement. In the lobby they were breathlessly praising the show from top to bottom.

Legally Blonde is a fun show overall, honest. It's funny, peppy, and does get the job done, which is just to entertain and make you laugh. So put on your favorite pink outfit and grab your fellow sorority sisters!

As Elle says, I double pinkie Delta Nu swear you will enjoy Legally Blonde!

GRADE: B-

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