STAGE WEST: "Mrs. Doubtfire" presented by Broadway San Diego

Rob McClure in "Mrs. Doubtfire."                                                                                  Photo by Joan Marcus

            The splendor of Rob McClure’s comic performance in “Mrs. Doubtfire” the musical is that he doesn’t try to be Robin Williams. But bravo, Mr. McClure, because your Daniel Hillard/Mrs. Doubtfire is a force of nature all its own.
            McClure has been starring in this musical adaptation by Karey and Wayne Kirkpatrick and John O’Farrell since it premiered in Seattle five years ago. (The show opened on Broadway in 2021 after a pandemic delay.) So this wacky two-character role he can probably do in his sleep by now.
            Not that it ever looks like he’s sleepwalking through a part that requires not only quick-changing from Daniel to a dowdy Scottish nanny but singing, dancing, riffing and all brands of physical comedy. Most impressive feat of the night: his “loop song” called “It’s About Time” in which he does improv, he does Elvis, he does puppets, he does it all. It’s an expansion of a scene from the film that’s amazin’ to watch.
            In fact, it’s the physical production numbers that work best in this musical “Mrs. Doubtfire” presented by Broadway San Diego: “Make Me a Woman” where Daniel’s makeup artist brother Frank (Aaron Kaburick) and Frank’s partner Andre (Nike Alexander) do just that; “Easy Peasy,” a wildly choreographed (by Lorin Latarro) cooking sequence in the kitchen; and the revealing “He Lied to Me” restaurant number highlighted by Lannie Rubio as a scorned and sexy Flamenco singer.
            The premise hasn’t changed much from the 1993 film. Daniel is an out-of-work voice actor whose perpetual Peter Pan complex is fun for his three kids but exasperating for his put-upon wife Miranda, played smartly on this tour by McClure’s real-life wife Maggie Lakis. After a divorce decree that Daniel only see the three kids once a week given his unemployment and disorganized life, he hits on the idea of applying for the job as the nanny his ex is seeking. You know the rest.
            Those vivid production numbers aside, the musical score of “Mrs. Doubtfire” is undistinguished, especially when syrupy ballads make their way, as they inevitably do on Broadway, into Act 2. Happily, there are lengthy sequences – most of them propping up the unfolding premise in Act 1 – where the comedy supersedes the song. Then it’s like watching “Mrs. Doubtfire” the movie live onstage, which is a treat if you loved the film.
            This is a very funny show that thrives on sight gags. Seeing Mrs. Doubtfire dancing (once in her skivvies) is a bonus not in the movie. Seeing a stage full of Mrs. Doubtfires dancing is another.
            Many in the cast make hay with their character parts, whether it’s Kaburick and Alexander, Romelda Teron Benjamin as a no-nonsense court-appointed social worker, Jodi Kimura as a buttoned-up television executive or Leo Roberts as Stu, the hunky new man in Miranda’s life.
            The onstage transformation of Daniel into Mrs. Doubtfire is cleverly achieved and often distracted from by gyrating dancers, and the aforementioned restaurant scene with its big reveal is a fine tribute to the spirit of the movie.
            If not for the cunningly choreographed numbers, this could have simply been a play version of the film. But then the comparisons to something made iconic by Robin Williams would intrude. Better it be a musical – not a perfect one by any means – but an undeniably appealing one with, like the movie, its heart in the right place.
            “Mrs. Doubtfire” runs through June 9 at the Civic Theatre, downtown.