“Nice Work If You Can Get It” first appeared on Broadway in New York City, 2012. Four years later, it’s made its way onto high school stages across the country. “Nice Work” premiered at the Gloria Logan Auditorium at Salem High School on March 11, 12, 18 and 19.  

The musical began with an upbeat jazz overture. A steady cymbal tapped, muted trumpets blared and the opening scene was one of sleazy, crowded dancing. With black curtains as a backdrop and the only props being a chair and table, the opening scene did not deliver a “wow-factor.”

Wealthy playboy Jimmy Winter, played by Plymouth senior Ryan Wagner, sat slumped over on a table center stage, contemplating his soon-to-be fourth marriage. Around him, clumps of dancers shimmied and shook, but not to the extent that folks in the 1920s did. The first musical number was “Sweet and Lowdown,” where choreography aspects of the original Broadway production were evident and Wagner’s vocal talent was established.

Most actors spoke with a New York accent, which heightened the level of entertainment.

A few minutes in, contrasting, star-crossed lovers Jimmy Winter and Billie Bendix interact for the first time. Bendix, played by Salem sophomore Hayley Martin is the captain of a successful bootlegging-trio. “Love is for suckers,” says Bendix when she meets the much-married millionaire.  Stumbling in his drunken nature, Winter shows immediate interest in her. Unlike Bendix, Winter is constantly looking for love. A three-time marriage failure, he is on a riveting campaign to find a woman his mother approves of. The two characters are opposites, but their flimsy pasts bring them together in some sort of odd, yet meant-to-be union.

Wagner’s portrayal of the carefree playboy was done effortlessly. Already experienced with musical lead roles in 2014’s “West Side Story” and 2015’s “Oklahoma!,” Wagner knows how to sing sweetly to his female counterparts. His wooing often invites and intrigues audience members into intimate moments.  However, a certain charm and passion that has been seen in Wagner’s previous performances seemed to lack. May it be Winter’s passive personality or simply Wagner’s lack of energy, there could have been more drive.

For only being a sophomore, Martin’s musical performance was compelling. In her first solo number “Someone to Watch Over Me,” Martin’s character stands alone in the crime-driven streets of New York, cradling a shotgun like she knows how to use it and longing to find her own Prince Charming, no matter how atypical he may be. Martin’s voice is clear and her ranges are broad. Music flowed out of her flawlessly and the emotion behind every situation was detectable.

Winter and Bendix’s love for each other is established in their dance duet of “S’Wonderful,” where both characters move together across stage, around tables and even on top of an antique lounge chair. It may have been Martin’s stiff-feet character or her lack of dancing experience, but Wagner’s technique was much more stable. Nonetheless, Wagner’s soothing, confident tenor balanced well with Martin’s raw, mature soprano.

An exceptional performance was done by the second member of Bendix’s bootlegging trio: Jonah Stephens, Canton junior, who played charming Cookie McGee. Stephen’s role as Will Parker in the 2015 production of “Oklahoma!” was well done and this year he delivered. His exaggerated facial expressions sold his character, often inviting the audience to be on stage with him. McGee’s cheeky character provided moments of punchy humor, especially in his biggest comedic scenes where he tucks in Winter with a teddy bear and later on kisses Senator Max Evergreen, played by Canton senior Brett Moore.

Overall, all actors did a great job with their characters.

Costume design stayed mostly consistent. Men wore black with gray-striped zoot-suit style pants with white collared shirts and bow ties. Women wore a variety of short dresses; Some were flapper-style, while others were clearly modern. Certain song and dance sequences called for specialized women's dress, such as Bubble Girl outfits in “Delishious” and “Fascinating Rhythm.”

As for main characters, Martin’s dress was the most interesting. Her character’s personality reflected on the way she dressed. With boyish street clothing and honey blonde hair hidden beneath a flat cap, Martin’s attire yelled “smart, shrewd and tenacious,” as McGee points out in the play. Even when later in the musical, character Bendix attempts to feminize herself, Martin appears with both a stunning red dress and the awkwardness her character flaunts.

Makeup was subtle. Men had their faces layered with dark cover-up and their faces contoured. Women were a little more glamorous, with dark eye makeup and bright colored lipstick. Hair was usually slicked back for the men, or worn short for the women.

Musical performance from the pit orchestra, under direction of Cathy Depentu Canton orchestra teacher, was well done. In brief moments the group rushed, but they held themselves together and delivered gaudy jazz tunes and smooth transitions.

However, one of the biggest distractions was the lack of props and background decoration. Backdrops included an interior house design, which was to replicate the inside of the Winter family’s wealth-fortified Long Island beach house, as well as the outside of the house, which was shown with a backdrop of luscious green trees, pink flowers and a cobblestoned garden walkway.  

Props were minimal, in which characters interacted within scant moments.

 In scenes that needed particular attention, lighting tasks were done subtly and were well balanced.

The play itself dealt with the everlasting conflict of unusual romance. As seen in timeless love ballets like Romeo and Juliet or in modern media, like Andrew and Allison from the Breakfast Club, opposites often seem to attract. This ageless theme seems to spark an interest in all age groups. A sense of praise is felt when two characters, no matter how different or burdened with baggage, fall for one another in the most unusual circumstances.

At the end of the day, nearly every show production deals with the pursuit of happiness. For the characters of “Nice Work,” the pursuit came with sneaky business, misunderstandings, and audacious humor, but challenges were solved rather quickly with a song or two. “Nice Work” touched lightly on human conflict and is not a play meant to epiphanize. By the end of the performance, it seems like everyone has a date and gaiety prevails.

With its elements of underground, lush 1920s culture of booze, jazz and money, “Nice Work” entertained. The Park Players did an exceptional job, a pattern they have kept for many years.