Kimberly Akimbo at the Ordway

The Tony Award–winning musical Kimberly Akimbo brings its heartwarming and uplifting message to The Ordway Center for the Performing Arts February 24 through March 1st.  Kimberly Akimbo is a tender and offbeat coming-of-age story wrapped in suburban absurdity. With book and lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire and music by Jeanine Tesori, the show balances poignancy and mischief in equal measure.

At the center is Kimberly Levaco, a bright, funny teenager with a rare aging condition that causes her to look like a woman in her sixties. Ann Morrison  plays Kimberly and anchors the production with warmth, vulnerability, and emotional precision. She captures the ache of a young girl racing against time without tipping into sentimentality. Her performance is gentle but grounded, allowing the audience to fully invest in Kimberly’s longing for normalcy and a future she may not have. 

Set at an ice skating rink named “Skater Planet” in a suburban town of New Jersey, Kimberly’s friends Seth, Martin, Aaron, Delia, and Teresa, all feel like they do not fit in with their high school crowd. Wishing to be noticed, four of the friends make plans for a Dreamgirls medley for their school show choir, while Seth and Kimberly join forces for a biology project. Seth loves to create anagrams and sets out to create one of Kimberly’s names which begins the kindling of first love.

Kimberly’s family is another story. Her parents Pattie and Buddy have their own dysfunctional relationship and financial issues and then comes her shifty, reckless aunt Debra.  Debra tries to recruit Kimberly’s friends in a “slightly illegal” questionable money making scheme. What could feel merely outrageous instead plays as razor-sharp satire, exposing adult irresponsibility. It is supposed to be comedic but I found it unsettling as it revealed just how easily youthful longing for connection can be manipulated. 

While Kimberly provides the emotional spine of the show, it is the five young actors playing her classmates who electrify the stage.  From their first entrance, they bring a kinetic energy that crackles through the theater. Their comic timing is tight, their ensemble chemistry feels effortless. Much of the evening’s biggest laughter comes from this quintet, whose deadpan delivery, perfectly calibrated awkwardness, and fearless commitment to absurd situations consistently land the show’s funniest lines.Their harmonies are bright and balanced while creating a believable, hilarious portrait of high school camaraderie that feels spontaneous and authentic. 

Vocally, the entire cast delivers Tesori’s intricate score with clarity and emotional depth. The ensemble numbers are fun, and even in moments when the script leans heavily into quirky territory, the actors commit fully, maintaining the show’s delicate balance between comedy and emotion.

The original musical score is contemporary, but character driven rather than pop-flashy. It’s more about storytelling through melody and lyrics.  The songs felt more integrated into the narrative rather than inserted for spectacle, which is rare these days. 

Overall, this production of Kimberly Akimbo succeeds because of the collective talent onstage. The musical balances biting humor and genuine heartbreak. At its core it is about choosing joy in the face of limitation and embracing life to the fullest.

Kimberly Akimbo runs now through March 1 at the Ordway in St. Paul.  Tickets are available at https://ordway.org/events/kimberly-akimbo/.