‘Wildcat’ stakes a new claim

Rip-roaring: Maureen McVerry plays Wildcat Jackson and Rob Hetzenbeller is Dynamite Joe in “Wildcat,” a musical about the adventures of a wily oil prospector in 1912. (David Allen)

By Special to The Examiner

Newly divorced from Desi Arnaz, television icon Lucille Ball packed up her family in the early 1960s and moved to New York, planning to become the next Broadway musical star. The show was called “Wildcat,” and it marked the Broadway debut of composer Cy Coleman, who would go on to write such classics as “Sweet Charity” and “City of Angels.”

Alas, it was not to be. The show had healthy advance sales based on the strength of Ball’s name, but it suffered from a troublesome book and critical indifference, receiving not a single Tony nomination that season.

The rigors of eight performances a week took their toll on Lucy, whose frequent illnesses forced the show to close after fewer than six months. Ball would attempt one more musical in her career, the disastrous film version of “Mame.”

“Wildcat” slipped into obscurity. It became a regional theater vehicle for the likes of Martha Raye and Mamie van Doren, but has never received a major revival. This makes it a perfect candidate for the attentions of 42nd Street Moon, the Bay Area’s conservator of lost musicals.

For the production that opens today, another vivacious redhead will be stepping into the cowboy boots and dungarees of Wildcat Jackson, a 1912 oil prospector in fictional Centavo City.

Maureen McVerry recently wrapped a supporting role in “High Spirits,” the musical based on Noel Coward’s “Blithe Spirit,” also produced at the Moon, as she calls it.

Though she recently played a ghost herself, McVerry does not feel haunted by the spirit of her famous predecessor.

“There will certainly be some Lucy-style bits — that is just so expected — but I’m not approaching it as an homage,” McVerry says. “The comparison has been made over the years, but it sort of goes with the territory if you’re a red-haired comedienne.”

What no longer goes with the territory at 42nd Street Moon productions is actors performing concert-style, with scripts in hand. Productions are now fully staged events, which creates both advantages and challenges for the performers.

“We only have three weeks to learn the show. That’s about 60 hours to work out the script, songs and choreography!” McVerry says. “There is a fly-by-the-seat-of-your pants feeling which is tough for someone like me who likes a lot of rehearsal. Fortunately, there’s a great feeling of camaraderie at the Moon. We’re all in it together and we give the audience the best we possibly can.”

IF YOU GO

Wildcat

Presented by 42nd Street Moon

Where: Eureka Theatre, 215 Jackson St., San Francisco

When: 8 p.m. Thursdays-Fridays; 6 p.m. Saturdays; 3 p.m. Sundays; closes May 24

Tickets: $24 to $42

Contact: (415) 255-8207, www.42ndstmoon.org