THEATER REVIEW : Music Makes ‘Boomers’ an Irresistible Force

You can’t ignore the baby boomers, that postwar population explosion of 1946-64, any more than you can overlook the bulge of an elephant moving through the body of a snake.

Books and articles proliferate about the generation of 77 million that went from watching the Mickey Mouse Club to the Kennedy assassinations and Vietnam War on TV. They’ve been hippies, they’ve been yuppies and they’ve inspired at least one television show (“thirtysomething”).

And for boomers who want to play back the music of their youth, they now have their own musical revue: “Boomers,” in a world premiere at Lamb’s Players Theatre in National City through Saturday.

Musically, “Boomers” is a hit-jammed trip down memory lane, beginning with the ‘40s songs by which the boomers were conceived (“Someone to Watch Over Me” cleverly followed by “Look Out for Mr. Stork”) and careening exuberantly clear through to the ‘90s.

That’s a lot of material to cover. To give the songs context, co-writers Vanda Eggington and Kerry Meads create a professor (David Cochran Heath) giving a lecture on boomers. They also introduce six stock characters, ranging from an aging hippie to a single career woman to a smug, success-oriented fellow born on the ‘60s cusp of the boom.

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The lecture and the characters don’t really make sense together, but what carries the show is the music--all done in short takes--and the professor’s exposition about the headlines of this generation.

While Meads and Eggington don’t interpret or even offer many insights about the boomers, simply telling the story of their still unfolding journey from rebellion to Establishment packs a punch.

A few facts: The baby boomer generation is twice as big as the generation that preceded it. The boomers helped propel the civil rights movement in the ‘60s; they demanded the end of the Vietnam War in the ‘70s. The greed of the ‘80s wore a yuppie face, and today smart politicians acknowledge their clout, particularly now that they have two of their own--Bill and Hillary Clinton--in the Oval Office.

But it’s the music that pricks memories and that, ultimately, makes “Boomers” irresistible. Sometimes it’s a song in context that does it, as when the company talks about the civil-rights movement and sings “We Shall Overcome.”

More often it’s humor that prevails as when the female cast members sing “I’m crying over you,” from the Roy Orbison hit the men respond with the Four Seasons’ “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” to which the women offer Lesley Gore’s retort, “It’s my party and I’ll cry if I want to.”

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The seven-member cast sparkles with bright performances, nicely directed by Meads, and fine voices, well-harmonized by Eggington as music director.

Linda Libby, a veteran of the San Diego Repertory Theatre’s “Six Women With Brain Death,” brings a big voice and soulful “been there” eyes to Susan, the single mother. Michael Hickey provides welcome counterpoint as Preston, the successful young boomer who pokes fun of older boomer whining. The four-man band provides spirited backup.

Pamela Turner did the clever choreography, Mike Buckley the set--a collage of collective memories on the stage floor, complemented by documentary photographs suggesting four walls above the intimate theater-in-the-round.

In response to wildly enthusiastic crowds, Lamb’s is considering bringing “Boomers” back in 1994 to its new home in Coronado. Given its popularity, it would be tempting to do it just as is. That would be a shame. Because if Meads and Eggington have the guts to rip apart the foundation and build a more convincing structure, this baby could actually have legs.

* “Boomers,” Lamb’s Players Theatre, 500 Plaza Blvd., National City. Wednesday-Thursday, 7:30 p.m.; Friday, 8 p.m.; Saturday, 2 and 8 p.m. Ends Nov. 13. $16-$20. (619) 474-4542. Running time: 2 hours, 15 minutes. Vanda Eggington Katherine

Bill Doyle: Miles

Paul Eggington: Bob

Kathi Gibbs: Roxie

David Cochran: Heath Professor

Michael Hickey: Preston

Linda Libby: Susan

A Lamb’s Players Theatre production. By Vanda Eggington and Kerry Meads. Directed by Kerry Meads. Musical direction by Vanda Eggington. Sets: Mike Buckley. Choreography: Pamela Turner. Costumes: Veronica Murphy. Lights: Nathan Peirson. Stage manager: Dalouge Smith.