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Rodgers and Hammerstein’s first production based on a true story opened on Broadway in March, 1951 with Gertrude Lawrence and Yul Brynner, racked up 1,246 performances in the initial run and Brynner did 4,625 performances over 34 years as the King plus the 1956 movie with Deborah Kerr. Full of timeless songs like “I Whistle a Happy Tune,” “Hello, Young Lovers,” “Getting to Know You” and “Shall We Dance,” The King and I is a Broadway classic that is the ultimate ‘feel good” show considered as the first true ‘theatre spectacle,’ The King and I opened the door for later scenically opulent shows.

While much of the general arguments and insults sure make the older Butley’s look (and act immature), the young liberals come off as semi-heros as the battle over the yard emerges. It is well known that many neighborhood land disputes end up in ugly violence, Native Gardens has an unsatisfying ‘happy ending.’ This play is quite funny mostly, the coceit is plausible yet quickly moves from funny, problemic to silly farce. The undertow here is that the older folks are cliches and the young liberals should rule making an uneven age bias obvious.

Tony award winning score by Stephan Flaherty has a fine mixture of ragtime, vaudeville and early jazz together with lofty ballads, a touch of gospel, Eastern European Jewish flavors, a hint of Joplin and stirring anthems aptly moving the story along. Lynn Ahrens’ lyrics are meaningful and resonating.

At she bonds with Einstein, Harding segways from Einstein’s work to his personal life. She speaks about a child he had in 1902 who was never spoken again after 1904. Here playwright St. Germain fictionalizes about what happened to the baby and what Harding’s connection is to that happening. Einstein’s reaction to that baby, now a grown women, and to that women’s child, a genius savant makes for a compelling story.

Unfortunately, with the exception of Sophie Kaegi, none of the cast can sing. That spells trouble for a musical! With 19 songs in a 100 minute one act, Little Miss Sunshine’s songs sounded like someone scratching their fin