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By Eric Robinette, Staff Writer 4:39 PM Wednesday, September 9, 2009

“Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” makes a fitting show for the season, with the changing colors of the fall leaves - but that’s not why the show was chosen.

La Comedia Dinner Theatre had originally scheduled the Mel Brooks musical “The Producers” for its fall slot, but La Comedia’s producers decided to mount a show that was smaller in scale and less costly, but still fun, said director Chris Beiser.

Therefore, the ever-popular show, the second by the team of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice (“Jesus Christ Superstar”), was tapped. Beiser himself has been involved in multiple productions of “Joseph,” and all of them were popular with audiences. La Comedia last staged it about six years ago.

“I think it’s just an energetic and fast-paced show. It packs a punch, that whole fast-paced style. This is the eighth time I’ve done the a production, and audiences just flock to this show,” said Beiser.

The musical is based on the biblical story of Joseph and his coat of many colors. His jealous brothers sell him into slavery, later claiming that Joseph has been killed. However, Joseph becomes popular in Egypt too, rising through the ranks and impressing the pharaoh.

What makes this “Joseph” stand out from some of the other productions, including the last La Comedia production, is that it’s a bit scaled down, lacking some of the splashier parts like a kids’ chorus, but that actually works to Beiser’s advantage.

“I want to do something more focused on the actual telling of the story. We have some very talented actors, and it’s been a nice thing for me to work with some very, very professional actors,” Beiser said.

Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2836 or erobinette@coxohio.com.