Daily Breeze
Torrance, California

PLAY REVIEW

The Fab Four takes audience on Beatlemanic magical mystery tour

By Jim Farber
DAILY BREEZE

Imagine.

That's the key to enjoying The Fab Four, who brought the music and the personalities of the Beatles to life on stage at the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center on Saturday, presented in collaboration with Civic Light Opera of South Bay Cities. It was also the title of the song that struck the most sympathetic chord, at a time when the world seems so far away from the unity of spirit John Lennon envisioned.

Imagine that somehow a wrinkle in time has opened up that allows you to attend a Beatles concert in which John, Paul, George and Ringo offer a portrait of their musical legacy, from the boyish innocence of Love Me Do to the world-weary acceptance of Hey Jude. Of course a real wrinkle in time has not opened up.

But The Fab Four members, with their highly developed impersonations and top-flight musicianship, are as close as you will ever get. It's not perfect. There are times when the mirror cracks, especially when Ardy Sarraf (who bears an uncanny resemblance to Paul McCartney, physically, vocally, instrumentally and emotionally) keeps chanting"How ya doin', South Bay?" It's meant to bring the performers closer to the audience, but it breaks the illusion every time he does it.

But when it works — and it works a lot more than you might think— it is a blast that will have you clapping, screaming and singing along. I did, and I'm an old crusty curmudgeon of a critic.

It made me long for those long ago days when I certainly would have grooved to a concert like this in a higher state of consciousness.

But so much for Sixties' nostalgia. The band members, who include Sarraf, Ron McNeil (as John Lennon), Michael Amador (as George Harrison) and Rolo Sandoval (as Ringo Starr), have put in an immense of amount of effort to get the details right, from their Liverpool accents, period costumes and instruments, to the exact harmonies and guitar licks, including Sarraf playing bass and guitar left-handed!

Unfortunately on Saturday there were times when the sound mix was less than perfect, with muddiness in the bass that muffled the vocals.

With the assistance of CLOSBC, this show has been enhanced to include a quartet of so-so go-go dancers, a bubble-belching Yellow Submarine and an orchestra. You could easily do without the go-gos and submarine — they're fun but of minimal importance.

The orchestra, however, is a fabulous addition that allows a string quartet to accompany Sarraf in his amazing rendition of Yesterday, add the high-flying trumpet solos (by Dennis Farias) to Penny Lane, and a sense of full instrumental magnitude to A Day in the Life (with its two monster crescendos) that is the musical high point of the show.

There are in fact a multitude of great moments: Amador's Here Comes the Sun, Sandoval's Yellow Submarine, the early hits Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!, the joy of A Hard Day's Night and Help and McNeil's moving, totally sincere rendition of Imagine.

There are also (inevitably) lots of songs missing, including: "Eleanor Rigby," "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds," "The Long and Winding Road," "When I'm 64," "Norwegian Wood," and the one I missed most- "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" (but I guess you need an Eric Clapton clone for that).

The show features some fun film clips including a love-torn Beatle fan waiting for their New York performance, and a modern sequence of everyday Brits doing their best to carry a Beatle's tune.

The one gimmick that gets tired is Paul Terry's presence as Ed Sullivan. It's funny and clever to begin with. But his recurring appearances and gag lines wear out their welcome. It be a "really gooood sheeew" with a bit less of him in it.

For anyone who loves the Beatles, or anyone who wants to introduce the Beatles to their kids, "The Fab Four" offers a magical mystery tour down memory lane. I'm sure there are purists who consider this a sacrilege. Pooh on them. As always it's John who says it best, when at the end of the concert, he jests, "Thank you all for coming, and I hope we passed the audition."