Madam
Music, Lyrics, and Book by Colin Healy
Directed by Sam Hayes
Choreographed by Cady Bailey
Fly North Theatricals
August 2, 2025
Avery Lux, Adrienne Spann, Liallian Cooper
Photo by Cady Bailey
Fly North Theatricals
Madam, an original musical from Fly North Theatricals penned by the company’s artistic director Colin Healy, has been in process for a few years, having begun with a production in Hannibal, MO and its last iteration having been staged here in St. Louis in 2020. I remember it making a strong impression when I saw that production five years ago, led by a dynamic performance by leading lady Kimmie Kidd, who still headlines the new version now being staged at FNT’s current home base, Greenfinch Theater & Dive. Now, with a new cast surrounding Kidd and a revised script and score, and now directed by Sam Hayes, the show still stands out as a strong character piece, with a lively score and tighter plotting than before. It also fits into its new space especially well.
The story is a highly fictionalized, almost mythologized tale set in St. Louis in the 19th Century and featuring some characters loosely based on real people. The intro, narrated by “working girls” Billie (Adrienne Spann), Tennie (Lillian Cooper), and Ripley (Avery Lux), tells the story of Madam Eliza Haycraft (Kidd), who operates a highly successful brothel in the city, and how she built her “Empire”. Eliza has strict rules for her house, including respect, consent, and paying up front, but most of the employees are not there to stay, as they have other goals–Ripley to go to medical school, Tennie to join her activist sister, and Billie (who has often disguised herself as a man to serve in the army and to play baseball) to make her fortune out West. There’s also Callista (Rachel Bailey), who is seen by the rest of the girls as Eliza’s heir apparent, and who has become essentially the regular client of a greedy, narcissistic local man known only as The Benefactor (Dustin Petrillo). Soon, a new young woman is brought into the picture, as the ailing, down-on-her-luck Mercy Jones (Jade Cash) shows up one night and is taken in by Eliza, whom Mercy in gratitude offers to help in managing her finances and organizing her will. Unknown to Eliza and most of the other girls, though, Mercy has a secret which ties her to the Benefactor, and which Callista–who was once an aspiring actress like Mercy–has little trouble figuring out at least partially. Meanwhile, the hard-drinking Eliza is in poor health, and isn’t expected to live much longer, while the Benefactor is scheming to get her to sell her house to him, since it’s on extremely valuable property.
The story is an intriguing one, and the characters are well defined, with a memorable score and catching songs like the notable “Empire” as well as Billie’s baseball song “Another Fence”, Mercy’s hopeful ballad “Star” and Eliza’s tour-de-force solo “Dinner For One”. Also, the tweaks to the plot–and especially the nature of the relationship between Mercy and the Benefactor–work well and add energy and coherency.
It’s an entertaining show overall, and an excellent showcase for its superb cast, although I can’t help but see it as ultimately a sad story, even though it means to be empowering. I don’t want to go too much into why since that would spoil some plot elements, but I do think it’s well worth seeing, and I think others may view the story differently. I also think the show still needs to figure out who its main protagonist is–Eliza or Mercy. It’s called Madam but despite Kidd’s powerhouse performance, the story often plays out like Mercy is at the center, with Mercy being the one who has the main dilemma and whose story drives the plot most, although she is also missing for large stretches of the story. Also, as important as Callista seems sometimes, and as excellent as Bailey is in the role, Callista’s role isn’t as well-defined as it could be, and the Benefactor is essentially a cartoon villain even though the talented Petrillo makes the most of the role.
The cast is fantastic, with Kidd and Cash both excellent as the ailing Eliza and conflicted Mercy. Spann, Cooper, and Lux are also terrific as Billie, Tennie, and Ripley, with Spann leading two of the more memorable songs (“Another Fence” and “Joy”). It’s a strong cast all around, both acting and singing, and bringing much energy to the atmosphere and period tone of the show. There’s also a great band led by music director Healy and energetic choreography by Cady Bailey.
The show also looks great, with the set–designed by Bradley Rohlf and Healy, and painted by Katie Orr–being probably the most elaborate set I’ve seen in a show in this venue. The creative team and technical crew have put their all into fitting the show into the Greenfinch, and it works especially well. The 19th Century look and atmosphere is well maintained, also by means of Hayes’s colorful and detailed costumes, Rohlf’s atmospheric lighting, and Kel Rohlf’s props.
Ultimately, I think Madam is an entertaining show that’s still a bit of a work in progress but works even better now than the last time I saw it, when I also enjoyed it and thought it deserved the several St. Louis Theater Circle nominations it received. This is a fine showcase for an excellent cast, and an intriguing look at a side of St. Louis history that isn’t talked about a lot. Its run has recently been extended as well, so there’s still plenty of time to check it out.
Kimmie Kidd
Photo by Cady Bailey
Fly North Theatricals
Fly North Theatricals is presenting Madam at Greenfinch Theater & Dive until August 17, 2025f
