Samantha Pudlin and Lilikoi Porter star in “Escape to Margaritaville” at Fort Myers Theatre. Pudlin was a Jimmy Buffett newbie; Porter the daughter of a bona fide Parrot Head.
“This show was definitely a baptism in all things Jimmy Buffett," said Pudlin. "But I was very excited about it. I was a little bit familiar with a few of the songs, like ‘Five O’Clock Somewhere’ and ‘Margaritaville,’ but I didn’t know the rest of them. But the more I listened, the more I fell in love with it. And I will be singing these songs for literally ever.”
Porter, by contrast, was exposed to Buffett’s songbook at an early age.
“Omigosh, my dad is a massive Parrot Head. I grew up listening to all of it, and we always had all the records and stuff. My dad was always playing it. When I think of my dad, I think of Jimmy Buffett.”
Both adore the way that Greg Garcia and Mike O’Malley strung together random Jimmy Buffett songs to create a cohesive plot. Porter explains.
“Specifically, like they bring out random songs like ‘Volcano’ and you’re like how are they going to make ‘Volcano’ make sense, but then it ends up being the whole plot of the island. Things like that. I think the randomness and flamboyance of Jimmy Buffett music finds a way to make sense of this, which is something I think the audience will really appreciate.”
Pudlin expects audience members to do more than don a flowered shirt, shorts and faded flip flops.
“We fully expect everyone to sing along. The music is familiar enough to where all the Jimmy Buffett fans are going to know and love the classic songs. But the music’s been amped up a bit. It’s given a little bit of a twist.”
“Escape to Margaritaville” is on stage at Fort Myers Theatre through June 8.
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“Everyone is really going to enjoy the show,” Pudlin promised. “There’s something so special about the music that Jimmy Buffett wrote and it’s so random, but [Garcia and O’Malley] kind of were able to take it all and put it into a big storyline and I think that’s just really awesome.”
The plot revolves around Tully, a charming island singer and bartender, who finds his carefree life disrupted when he falls for Rachel, a dedicated and career-minded tourist. She comes to the island with her bestie, Tammy, who will be getting married to a condescending jerk of a boyfriend when the two return to Cincinnati. But once on the island, Rachel falls for Tully and Tammy for a bartender by the name of Brick. The remainder of the story follows their evolving romance and what happens after all of them leave the island.
The show's music consists of songs previously recorded by Buffett, and written by him and various other songwriters, with one exception, the original song, "Three Chords."
The musical had a brief run on Broadway, premiering at the Marquis Theatre on February 16, 2018, officially opening March 15, and closing on July 1 of the same year after 29 previews and 124 performances.
A national tour ensued in 2019 but was suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Pudlin loves the way the songs have been arranged to develop and advance the plot.
“I think they very much work, especially in the context of the show, because when you’re putting a show together, everything has to flow a certain way, and so I think everyone’s going to really love the arrangements,” Pudlin said.
“I think specifically songs like ‘He Went to Paris’ and ‘Coast of Marseilles’ stand alone in meaning. But like in the context of the show, they add to plot so much and add so much depth to these characters ... so I think people that relate to those songs on their own will come to the show and relate to the characters who sing those songs.”
Pudlin and Porter were representative of the cast in general when it came to their familiarity with Jimmy Buffett’s musical anthology.
“Before rehearsals, half of us just knew the songs automatically, and half of us were like I’ve never heard this in our entire life,” Porter observed.
“But then we were able to catch on from the people who did know,” Pudlin said, laughing.
The cast enjoys quite a bit of chemistry notwithstanding the fact that the character of Brick wasn’t cast until well into the rehearsal process. No matter.
“Most of us have worked together before, minus a few new people, but that’s the thing about theater,” said Pudlin. “Everyone’s so inviting and loving that you feel like you’ve known them forever. And there’s a lot of love in our cast, and I think you can feel that when you come see it.”
Samantha Pudlin (Tammy) has an extensive resume. Among her stage credits are Glinda in “The Wizard of Oz,” Miss Honey in “Matilda the Musical” at Fort Myers Theatre, Susan in Fort Myers Theatre’s production of “tick, tick … Boom!,” Martha Watson in “Irving Berlin’s White Christmas,” Lucy in “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” for Fort Myers Theatre, Gabrielle in Rodgers & Hammerstein’s “Cinderella” at The Belle Theatre, one of the disciples in “Godspell” at Fort Myers Theatre, the role of Meg in “Little Women” for Fort Myers Theatre, ensemble work in “Head Over Heels” for New Phoenix Theatre, the Lady of the Lake in “Spamalot,” Crystal in “Little Shop of Horrors” and Marcy Park in “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” a social worker and mom in “Body and Sold” at Laboratory Theater, Nurse Kelly in “Harvey,” Protean in “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,” and a dancer and member of the ensemble in “Sweet Charity.” Pudlin also appeared in the ensemble at Florida Repertory Theatre in "13: A New Musical" and was a singer in "Live @ Choc’s Hooray for Hollywood."
Lilikoi Porter (Rachel) has a growing body of work that includes Dorothy Gale in Fort Myers Theatre’s production of “The Wizard of Oz,” multiple roles in “Matilda the Musical” at Fort Myers Theatre, Gertrude in “Seussical,” Judy Haynes in “Irving Berlin’s White Christmas,” Janet Weiss in “The Rocky Horror Show,” the rabbit in “You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown” (a show in which she also functioned as both swing and Stage Manager) and Sister Margaretta in “Sound of Music,” all for Fort Myers Theatre. Back home in North Carolina, she played Meg in “Little Women” and the Lady of the Lake in “Spamalot.”
Kagan Vann plays singer Tully Mars, and he carries the show with strong vocals and a laid-back island vibe. Vann’s prior stage credits include Robert Martin in “The Drowsy Chaperone,” Rocky in “The Rocky Horror Show” for Fort Myers Theatre (twice), Lumiere for Fort Myers Theater in “Beauty and the Beast,” Ferdinand in Lab Theater’s production of “The Tempest” (which marked his Lab Theater debut), deranged King Charlemagne in “Pippin,” Jafar in “Aladdin” and Shrek in “Shrek the Musical.”
Nicole Anderson plays the part of bar owner Marley. Prior to that, Anderson has appeared in the ensemble of “Rent,” played Emily Hobbs in “Elf the Musical” for Fort Myers Theatre, Alma Hix in “The Music Man,” Grimhilde, the Evil Queen, in Disney’s “Descendants: The Musical” and Nurse Ancestors in “Addams Family,” a role that followed a 25-year hiatus in onstage appearances.
Rounding out the cast are Stephen Dwyer as Brick, Marty Ammann Sr. as JD, Joshua Potter as JJ, Emory Ambrosio as Chadd (and a member of the ensemble), Adrianna Farrugia as Female Tourist (and a member of the ensemble), Elizabeth Robb as Wanda (a weatherwoman and member of the ensemble), Jessica Turner (weatherwoman, ensemble), Jackson Potter (multiple roles including weatherman, podcaster and ensemble), Kiernan McKinney (MC Sloppy Joe, Alan Kirschenbaum, ensemble), Ava Drury (ensemble) and Cole Edwards (ensemble).
Robin Dawn Ryan directed and choreographed the show.
Support for WGCU’s arts & culture reporting comes from the Estate of Myra Janco Daniels, the Charles M. and Joan R. Taylor Foundation, and Naomi Bloom in loving memory of her husband, Ron Wallace.