Dennis DeYoung goes to the dogs for '101 Dalmatians'

Most people know Dennis DeYoung as a co-founder and frontman of the rock group Styx. But the Chicago native has also shown a talent for writing musical theater scores.

DeYoung's 1997 version of Victor Hugo's "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" was a 2008 hit for Chicago's Bailiwick Repertory Theatre (it also won a Joseph Jefferson Citation for Best Musical). Now Chicago audiences get a chance to hear more of DeYoung's songwriting chops as the composer and co-lyricist on "The 101 Dalmatians Musical." A national tour of the 2009 musical hits the Cadillac Palace Theatre for a two-week run starting Tuesday, Feb. 16.

Most people know "101 Dalmatians" from the classic 1961 Disney animated film, which many critics laud for the unforgettable villain Cruella De Vil, the famed fashionista who wants to turn dalmatian puppy pelts into fur coats. But far fewer know that the cartoon was inspired by Dodie Smith's 1956 children's novel "The One Hundred and One Dalmatians."

The producers behind this new musical acquired the stage rights to Smith's original novel, which is why you don't see the Disney name attached to the show - nor will you hear any of the songs from the film.

Co-Producer Lee D. Marshall of Magic Arts & Entertainment/Tix Productions approached DeYoung to write the "101 Dalmatians" score, after working with him on concerts and a 1990s tour of "Jesus Christ Superstar."

"Number one, I knew it was a show for kids and families," said DeYoung, adding that he composed songs in "101 Dalmatians" so that "kids in the audiences could hear on one listen and want to sing along."

DeYoung and his writing collaborator, playwright and co-lyricist BT McNicholl ("The IT Girl"), decided to frame the show from the dogs' perspective. In fact, actors playing humans use construction stilts to tower eight feet over the actors playing their pets.

"We set the convention up right away," said actor Jimmy Ludwig, who plays the leading dog Pongo. "It's really cool since it gives us the freedom to have humans playing dogs and actual dogs - we travel with 15 dalmatians on tour."

Sonically, DeYoung found a way to differentiate between the two worlds. "The dogs I wanted to exist in a more pop music world," DeYoung said. "The humans move slower and, because they're on stills and seem a little more old-fashioned, they're the Broadway babies - they sing the more traditional Broadway songs."

"101 Dalmatians" isn't slated to hit Broadway per se (its upcoming New York engagement is at Madison Square Garden), but it does have lots of Broadway talent attached. Four-time Tony Award winning director Jerry Zaks oversees the production, while Broadway veteran Sarah Gettelfinger ("Dirty Rotten Scoundrels," "Seussical," "Nine") is making her debut as Cruella De Vil in Chicago. (The show's previous Cruella, Broadway star Rachel York, recently left the tour because of potential film/TV conflicts in Los Angeles, according to DeYoung.)

Gettelfinger is "formidable - she really is a great singer and a great funny actress," DeYoung said. "She looks to be over six-foot to me, so when we get her on those stilts she's really going to be something!"

Though DeYoung and Styx are represented on Broadway in the jukebox musical "Rock of Ages" ("Too Much Time on My Hands"), he would like one of his full original scores to play the Great White Way someday. It's difficult in the case of "Hunchback" since two other famous versions already exist.

And though DeYoung isn't adverse to creating a jukebox musical based upon Styx songs, he says it would really need the right vehicle to work.

"I would rather do something new," DeYoung said. "The excitement for me is in the creative process."

But for now, DeYoung is pleased with the overwhelmingly positive audience responses he's witnessed to "101 Dalmatians" on tour.

"This musical in my opinion is the right musical for this time," DeYoung said. "It's a story about family and how, through love and commitment, they're able to overcome a crisis. It gives kids a really good message about being together and working through difficult situations - and it's got Cruella De Vil!"

<p class="factboxheadblack">"The 101 Dalmatians Musical" </p>

<p class="News"><b>Location:</b> Cadillac Palace Theatre, 151 W. Randolph St., Chicago, (800) 775-2000 or broadwayinchicago.org</p>

<p class="News"><b>Showtimes: </b>7:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays (8 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 16), 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Saturdays (and on Wednesday, Feb. 24), 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 21 (1 p.m. only Feb. 28). Closes Feb. 28. </p>

<p class="News"><b>Tickets:</b> $18-$85 </p>