By Dave Begel Contributing Writer Published Oct 11, 2014 at 11:16 AM

Taking one of Stephen King’s most chilling books and turning it into a musical has proven to be a difficult task for the world of big time theater. Each effort at a run on Broadway has ended in the ashes of big, big flop.

But some people always thought there was a serious story in King’s tale of a victimized high school girl who is the object of peer scorn until she discovers magic powers and kills everyone who has given her crap.

Now, the truth of that great book has emerged after endless rewrites and re-scores and re-re-re-how can we fix this. Just how good a musical they’ve ended up with was on joyous display Friday night when Theatre Unchained opened "Carrie: The Musical," at its great spot on South 5th Street.

In this production, directed by Thomas Jacobsen, the creators have decided to play the thing straight. No camp jokes. No snide glances. No tortured jokes. Just a straight play about a girl named Carrie who has a strict godly mother, one friendly teacher and a high school float worth of jeering teenagers who were bullies long before the idea of bullying became a national obsession.

Make no mistake about it: This is not a musical that’s ever going to win any awards. The lyrics are often maudlin and uninspired, the score is nothing to write home about and the book is really just a bridge from one song to the next.

But the young and energetic cast assembled on the stage for this production gave it enough oomph that the story grabbed the audience and turned what could easily have been some kind of farce into a solid drama with enough suspense to keep things going for just over two hours.

The story is about Carrie, a high school outcast who is the target for vicious teenage vitriol.  She is caught between this crowd and her mother, Margaret, who keeps her thumb on Carrie’s heart, with worship of her lord as the weapon of choice.

Midway through, Carrie discovers she has telekinetic powers that can wreak all kinds of havoc.

Carrie eventually gets invited to the senior prom. Her mom says no, but Carrie gives her a zap, and mom has to butt out of the discussion. Carrie turns from the plain wraith into a lovely young woman and even has a romantic dance at the prom before being crowned queen. She thinks she has escaped her purgatory, but instead ends up getting a pail of blood dumped on her, setting her off and killing everyone at the dance with her magic skills.

Anna Pfefferkorn, who plays Carrie, is a dynamic young force to be reckoned with. She’s a UWM student and will graduate with a degree in musical theater, and she understands both parts of that degree. She can sing with expressive style and understands that singing without acting is, well, just singing. She was a delight as the queen of victimhood, then as the queen of the hop and finally as the queen of vengeance.

Liz Norton, a veteran of Milwaukee stages, is absolutely spectacular as Carrie’s deeply troubled mother who finds solace in religious devotion and is determined to make her daughter heel to the same forces. Norton can act with the best of them, and her voice, which is probably an expressive alto, gives force to the lyrics that come her way.

When Carrie, gorgeously dressed in a simple white prom dress along with a delicate peach shawl, has left her mother at home, Norton delivers "When There’s No One," perhaps the best song in the show and one of the best songs about being left alone I’ve ever heard.

"When the smiles I used to see
Are not for me
What will I do?
Nobody’s told me
Who will hold me?
There is no sun
When there is no one."

The young troupe of actors and dancers were full of energy and the inventive choreography of Parker Christian served the small stage well. Music director Joshua Parman did a great job of getting people who had variously strong voices to sing, both individually and in solid harmonies.

Sure, there were times when the acting stumbled a bit. There seemed to be a need to dial things back a little bit because you can’t keep up that kind of intensity for two hours. There were also moments when the oversinging got to be too much and moments when an actor needed to take a deep breath and back off the gallop to the finish line.

Kendall Yorkey, who played the gorgeous primary tormenter of Carrie, had all the toughness for the role and she sings like a powerhouse, but she could work at making herself occasionally more subtle. Nobody can be that over-the-top angry all the time. Trey Korte, who plays one of the few adults in the school with some sense, needs to find a way to pick up cues a little faster and has to cut down on his wild gestures.

But those are minor flaws that may well work themselves out during the run of the production. Hot on the heels of the wonderful production of "The Addams Family Musical,"  this company has delivered two very enjoyable productions in a row. They are on a hot streak, with their latest providing a very fun evening of theater.

Dave Begel Contributing Writer

With a history in Milwaukee stretching back decades, Dave tries to bring a unique perspective to his writing, whether it's sports, politics, theater or any other issue.

He's seen Milwaukee grow, suffer pangs of growth, strive for success and has been involved in many efforts to both shape and re-shape the city. He's a happy man, now that he's quit playing golf, and enjoys music, his children and grandchildren and the myriad of sports in this state. He loves great food and hates bullies and people who think they are smarter than everyone else.

This whole Internet thing continues to baffle him, but he's willing to play the game as long as OnMilwaukee.com keeps lending him a helping hand. He is constantly amazed that just a few dedicated people can provide so much news and information to a hungry public.

Despite some opinions to the contrary, Dave likes most stuff. But he is a skeptic who constantly wonders about the world around him. So many questions, so few answers.