'Phantom' parody is clever, hilarious

PHANTOM OF THE GRAND OL' OPRY, Desert Star Theatres, Murray, through June 9 (266-7600), running time: two hours (one intermission)

MURRAY — "Phantom of the Grand Ol' Opry," a country-Western parody of Andrew Lloyd Weber's "Phantom of the Opera," has at least two things in its favor — the show is about half as long as the Broadway musical and the songs aren't stuck in a repetitive, Johnny-One-Note rut.

Oh, and Desert Star's version doesn't take itself nearly as seriously.

Co-creators Scott Holman (who also directed) and Ben E. Millet take the tired old plot and add plenty of down-home humor in moving it to Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn.

The basic plot is pretty much the same, with just a change in scenery and music. Christine (nicely played by Heather Elmer) is an aspiring country singer in the chorus of the Grand Ol' Opry. She's being tutored on the side by the mysterious Angel of Music — the venue's legendary Phantom (Ryan J. Poole), whose hideously disfigured face apparently was the result of a nuclear fuel mishap while visiting the EnergySolutions arena.

The action picks right up as the Opry is taken over by a New York-based communications conglomerate. Geekish Andrew Fermin (Seth A. Larsen) and heroic Raoul (Justin Berry) arrive to manage the theater, where feuding co-stars Billy Bob Cyprus (Matt O'Malley) and larger-than-life diva Wynona Jugg (Kerstin Davis) are in another of their ongoing snits.

Costume mistress Frau Knockwurst (Mary Parker Williams) and stagehand Bucket (Richy T. Steadman) attempt to keep things moving along, despite threats from the "Opera Ghost." Christine and Raoul discover that she's "A Little Bit Country" and he's "A Little Bit Rock 'n' Roll."

Of course, there's a chandelier — a large wagon wheel hanging over the front of the stage, which the Phantom fails to make crash despite repeated attempts. When the Phantom threatens "Y'all will rue the day you mocked me," Raoul promises to take Christine somewhere where he can never find her — Branson, Mo.

Fairly true to the original, there's a desperate search through the catacombs far below the Opry house and a dramatic climax in the Phantom's lair, all solidly tongue-in-cheek.