Theater Review:

The Colony Theatre’s newest production is an unexpectedly delightful and engaging medley that’s full of life, love and laughter.

“Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living Paris” is an action-packed, two-hour musical featuring world-class songs from celebrated singer and songwriter Jacques Brel. It allows audiences to fully experience the incredible range of emotion onstage while sitting in their seats.

Based on Brel’s lyrics and commentary and brought to life by Eric Blau and Mort Shuman, this long-running off-Broadway show that was revived in 2006 exposes unfamiliar English-speaking audiences to this Belgian/French talent who has sold 25 million albums worldwide. Revered in Europe, Brel was once described by French singer Edith Piaf as someone whose singing “hits you in the face and leaves you dazed.”

Directed by Jon Lawrence Rivera and starring Eileen Barnett, Gregory Franklin, Jennifer Shelton and Zachary Ford, “Jacques Brel is Alive” is far from your typical musical.

In the vigorous “Funeral Tango,” Franklin whirls around the stage, jumps on top of chairs then plops himself into a grave and sings “The old women are there/Too old to give a damn/They even brought the kids/Who don’t know who I am.”Barnett gives a brilliant, tender and emotional performance as she solemnly sings, “Marieke” in Flemish and French. Though the varying degrees of poignancy are certainly appreciated, the fact that no margins are left for reflection slightly hinders a real understanding or reflection of the stories within the songs.

The performances, on the other hand, are top notch, even if numbers instead of names are used to refer to the cast. Ford, who made his Los Angeles debut in “Little Women” at the Lyric Theatre, takes on a double role — singing and playing the accordion, which he does with pleasant ease. Although both his solo performances deal with rather morose, neurotic and unfiltered topics, he handles them quite well.

Shelton, a frequent performer at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center in Long Beach, is likable throughout the performance. Her voice is just as lovely, with enough force to fill the entire 270-seat theater.

Of course, the stage shines brightest when the quartet sings together. Shelton, Franklin and Ford take on the comical “Timid Frieda,” incorporating a crowd-pleasing routine that is worthy of applause.

The costume design by Dianne K. Graebner is simple yet elegant and aligns with each actor’s character — Barnett’s poised and purple Parisian get-up and Ford’s armed forces jacket complete with tousled hair and cream-colored accordion are nicely reflected in the subject matter of their songs.

About the writer LIANA AGHAJANIAN is a journalist covering arts, culture, news and more for print and online publications in Los Angeles and beyond.