“Sweet Charity” dazzles at Tacoma Musical Playhouse 

Tacoma Musical Playhouse transports audiences to 1960s New York with “Sweet Charity”

By Ella Walken

Though many know the song “Big Spender” from endless covers and its catchy chorus, few are familiar with its source material, “Sweet Charity.” Crafted by a team of all-stars, including Bob Fosse and legendary screenwriter Neil Simon, “Sweet Charity” is a defining musical of the 1960s. “Sweet Charity” follows Charity Hope Valentine, a down on her luck hopeless romantic dance hall hostess seeking true love. 

Tacoma Musical Playhouse is presenting “Sweet Charity” as their fourth show of the 2025-2026 season. The production is co-directed by Harry Turpin and Christina Naficy with music direction by John Kelleher. 

The audience is introduced to Charity in a moment of crisis. She reveals to her aloof boyfriend that she has scrimped and saved enough to pay for their apartment. He steals her purse, pushes her into a well and runs off, leaving her drowning and broke. 

The first act follows Charity as she makes her way through the city. She goes to the dance hall where she is employed, and “Big Spender” is performed for the first time. Every scene in the dance hall is electric.  

The combination of striking set design with the comedic chops of Charity’s fellow dancers immerses theatergoers into Charity’s reality before she stumbles into a glamorous night out with an Italian movie star Vittorio Vidal. In his performance of Vidal, Stan Morrow is simultaneously quick witted and larger than life. His rendition of “Too Many Tomorrows” is both humorous and earnest.  

After a 15 minute intermission, the first number of act two features Kyle Laird as Daddy Brubeck, a San Francisco cult leader who has made his way to New York City along with his congregation, the Rhythm of Life. Decked out in hippy 1960s attire, one can see why Brubeck has such a devoted following. Laird is luminous in this number, equally funny as he is convincing. His voice soars during the ensemble number, plunging theater goers into the second act. 

While Sweet Charity is an ensemble production, its eponymous character, Charity Hope Valentine, is present in nearly every scene. The audience is asked to join Charity in her quest for love and fulfillment, often landing her in outrageous situations. Thankfully, Whitney Shafer’s Charity is impossible not to love. Shafer plays her as bright eyed and eternally optimistic. 

Specifically, Schafer’s prowess in dance is breathtaking. She matches endurance with precision, always maintaining Charity’s cheery disposition no matter how physically demanding the number may be. 

It is important to note that many of the digitally projected backdrops used to portray New York City appear to be AI generated. Images that are meant to portray iconic locations such as Coney Island and Lower Manhattan appear to be AI. Though The Ledger does not have evidence beyond what is seen on stage, anyone with a slightly trained eye could pin these projected images as AI.  

Especially in the arts, it is important to center human creativity. At a time when artists are losing their livelihoods to generative AI, it is disappointing that a local arts organization would choose to feature AI generated images.  

Sweet Charity runs through May 3, featuring performances on Fridays at 7:30 PM, Saturday at 2 PM and 7:30 PM, and Sunday at 2 PM. Tickets for students, seniors and military are 32 dollars. Children’s tickets are 25 dollars and adults are 35.