So I managed to hop into Tacoma Little Theatre last weekend to see its take on The Buddy Holly Story. Frankly, my expectations weren’t high because I know that the theater is continuing to rebuild itself after a few tough years.



I have to say that the show well exceeded my expectations and even got me laughing and smiling from time to time. At the center of why the show worked is the “Let’s put on a show” sort of feel it had at the community theater.



There were some sour notes and musical miscues, but the energy worked past those issues. And the show-within-a-show script does much more than just hold its own between musical numbers as it tells the story of the young boy who marches his way to rock-and-roll stardom.



Director Brett Carr also took the show to a high level by using the theater’s revolving stage as a transition device as the show flows from one scene to the next. The stage becomes a recording studio or Holly’s house with a flick of a few switches and a few seconds of on-stage rotating of the sets.



Since Holly anchors the show, it only seems fitting that he should anchor the playbill. And he does. Ryan Coleman rocks it as Holly and brings the legendary rocker to life with nuanced tones and power chords. There were times when it seemed that he was channeling the spirit of the man with the nerdy glasses.



Rounding out the cast is bassist Jacob Rifenbery and his brother, drummer Connor Rifenbery, as the Crickets. Then there is South Sound theater veteran Michael Storslee as Holly’s go-to guy and LaNita Hudson as the golden piped emcee.



Veteran thespian Mike Slease brings it with his portrayal of the Big Bopper who lands his version of “Chantilly Lace.” 



It would be awkward for me to not mention my boy Kevin Freitas, who shaved his beard for the role as lead singer for the Hayriders, blasted the trumpet and even sang a few bars. Good times.



But, of course, the real draw of the show is the music. Weighing in with more than two dozen songs, the show is a heavy dose of all things old school rock and roll. And it is better for it.



[Tacoma Little Theatre, through June 28, 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday, $18-$22, 210 N. I St., Tacoma, 253.272.2281]