ARTS . Arts Picks

Altar Boyz

Through Feb. 15, $35-$42.50, Media Theatre, 104 E. State St., Media, 610-891-0100, mediatheatre.org.


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Published: Jan 28, 2009

Theater

I don't know what to make of Altar Boyz. A slick boy-band parody (years too late) with a happy Christian message?It doesn't sound like a hit, but this 2005 Outer Critics Circle Award winner for Outstanding Off-Broadway Musical has been a smash in New York and around the country, and Media Theatre's local première features UArts grad Joey Contreras.The show The New York Times called "an enjoyably silly diversion" juxtaposes white-boy hip-hop posturing with wholesome themes in songs like "Girl You Make Me Wanna Wait" and "Jesus Called Me on My Cell Phone." Altar Boyz sounds like a Forever Plaid fictional concert setup, except the guys — Matthew, Mark, Luke, Juan and Abraham (get it?) — haven't just returned from heaven, they're hoping to get there someday. Lest the lads seem too biblical, they're also designated boy-band stereotypes: the bad boy, the sensitive one, the Latin lover, the leader and the gefilte fish out of water. (OK, maybe NKOTB didn't have one of those.)

Through Feb. 15, $35-$42.50, Media Theatre, 104 E. State St., Media, 610-891-0100, mediatheatre.org.