A lot of bong water has passed under the bridge since “Reefer Madness: The Musical” first premiered at the Hudson Theatre on Santa Monica Blvd. in 1998. Like, legalization of the demon weed in most states… plus, about a million more camp musicals that have come down the pike since then, maybe lessening any obvious need to bring back a show satirizing long-bygone pot paranoia. Fortunately, though, the passage of a quarter-century has not done anything to diminish what a kick “Reefer” can be, at least when presented in a revival as expert as the one now being pushed at the Whitley on Hollywood Blvd.
You assuredly do not have to be a dope fiend, or even someone who’s ever celebrated 4/20 as a national holiday, to feel like your perspective on the dimensions of the room is shifting a little over the course of the show. That’s not a hemp-fueled illusion — it’s just a realization of how much Broadway-level singing and dancing has been deliriously packed into a rather small space. Earlier in this century, the Whitley was a house-music dance club called the King King, before turning legit for this production. Even with tables and chairs taking over the floor, though, there may not actually be much less dancing going on, thanks to a cast of about a dozen that is frequently executing some leggy high kicks in the aisles. If really close proximity to a surplus of delightful choreography is your drug of choice, this may well be the show for you.
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