Up for Review: "Little Women" at the Morris Performing Arts Center

As a young child, I remember reading “Little Women” and being transfixed by a story all about family and women being the center of the plot, finding Jo to be particularly relatable as I too wrote stories in my room and acted them out for my family. 

The musical adaptation of “Little Women” did the same thing the book did for me: make me cry and remind me of the power of familial love. 

The sister chemistry between all the March sisters was pertinent to getting the point of the show across and one of the first songs in the musical, “Our Finest Dreams,” proved that these girls had the love that the March sisters shared in their small, Concord home. 

Hannah Taylor as Jo March immediately charms the audience with the humor and lightness that the character is so well-known for, but also the passion and “fire within her” that makes her character undeniable to watch at all points of the show. 

Her rendition of “Astonishing,” the final song in Act One where Jo declares her purpose in life is to leave home and make it big as a writer, is just as triumphant and overwhelming with emotion and life as Sutton Foster’s in the original cast of the musical. 

Along with Jo, I thought a good counterpart to her acting and singing chops was Aathaven Tharmarajah as Laurie. The two had great chemistry, making it hurt when you see Laurie and Amy walk through the door together holding hands. 

Tharmarajah as Laurie also played the character in a way more true to the book: a goofball that fits with Jo’s playfulness. While other adaptations haven’t gotten this right before, the musical and Tharmarajah hit the character and his growth throughout the story perfectly. 

Another stand out in the show for me was Aaron Bower as Marmee. Her performances of “Here Alone” and “Days of Plenty” were operatic, haunting and emotional. I believed she was Marmee when she was joking around with the girls and when she was crying with them, sharing both sides of her as a mother. 

One part of the show that I thought other adaptations did not get correct but the musical did was the absurdity of Aunt March, played by Moriel Behar. “Could You” gave us both a look into who she is, but also proved how comical her snootiness is, giving layers to the character.

I also felt Meg March, played by Rachel Pantazis, was depicted with more personality in this adaptation, being playful along with the other March girls instead of being singled out as the oldest one. 

I also liked the addition of the scenes of Jo’s book, getting to know her stories and the creativity that Jo possesses in creating characters. I liked that we got to know her characters almost as much as we get to know the sisters themselves. 

The music was charming and playful, just like the characters. It was a mix of contemporary broadway ballad and folksy sounds, keeping in the time period but also giving the story a good stage feel. 

Overall, the musical left me crying, but also hopeful, cutting off before we get to see their very endings, but giving each March sister their happy ending after dealing with their own tragedies.