Written by orange• April 6, 2026• 1:18 am• Merage JCC, Musical, Review, Uncategorized

J Stage Presents: You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown @ Merage JCC – Review

photo credit: Photos by Bobke

Written by Daniela Litvak

Based on Charles M. Schulz’s beloved “Peanuts” comic strip, You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown made its debut in 1967 with future M*A*S*H star, Gary Burghoff, in the title role. Then, in 1999, it was revived and revised, with Broadway legends Kristin Chenoweth and Roger Bart winning Tonys for their performances as Sally and Snoopy.

Story:

Watching You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown is like binge-watching several “Peanuts” cartoons. Instead of telling one story, or a main story with subplots, the show is composed of slice-of-life vignettes—many of them of famous, recurring “Peanuts” storylines. Lucy Van Pelt (Jennifer Ann Marks) doles out advice to Charlie Brown (Charlie Massey) from her psychiatry booth. The Peanuts gang plays baseball. Snoopy (Tiffany Huyen) battles World War I flying ace, the Red Baron.

Speaking of Snoopy, You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown is notable as a “Peanuts” story in which Snoopy speaks, rather than being limited to thought bubbles and pantomime. It is an understandable change, albeit not without its detractors. I think letting Snoopy speak is worth it for “Suppertime” alone. It is one of the musical’s best numbers, and Huyen performed it wonderfully.

Acting/Costumes:

Massey conveyed Charlie Brown’s trademark anxiety and weariness into his performance. Jennifer Ann Marks and Haven Hanson as Linus Van Pelt delivered some of the show’s most poignant moments. Bennett Kommer as Woodstock and Zack Alexson, Levi Robles, and Leyla James Trinh as Friends of Woodstock were absolutely adorable.

The costumes were bright and bold. For the most part, especially the human characters, they appeared comic strip/cartoon-accurate. (In a nice touch, even members of the Ensemble who were not explicitly named were made up to look like recognizable “Peanuts” characters). However, there was a kind of visual disconnect watching actors that did not really look like “Peanuts” characters wearing “Peanuts” costumes that prevented full immersion into the story until you got used to the disconnect.

Less literal costume approaches were necessary for nonhuman characters such as Woodstock, Friends of Woodstock, and Snoopy. For Woodstock and Friends and Woodstock, it worked because, as said before, they were absolutely adorable. Snoopy’s design took getting used to but ultimately won me over.

However, the makeup was heavily applied. It was distracting.

The level of care and detail that went into the props was appreciated. For instance, “The Book Report,” you could see the notebooks characters were writing into, and the level of scribbling was appropriate for each character.

The set design brought you into the “Peanuts” world. The backdrop looked like comic strip panels. Physical set pieces, like Snoopy’s dog house, seemed straight out of the cartoon.