Andrew Lloyd Webber’s stirring Sunset Boulevard bowled over critics and the public alike back in the early ’90s and went on to win seven Tony Awards. Now, as part of its 80th anniversary season, Palo Alto Players is presenting the first-ever Bay Area staging of this musical.

They can’t fully replicate the extravagant productions of the past (nor, it can be assumed, would they want to, since those lavish sets and costumes led to record financial losses, even though the play was a major hit). However, the music, story and characters are all here.

Based on the 1950 film noir classic starring Gloria Swanson and William Holden, Sunset Boulevard tells the story of Joe Gillis, a struggling Hollywood script writer who happens upon a crumbling mansion while fleeing from a couple of repo men. Inside, he meets Norma Desmond, a half-forgotten film star of the silent age who never made the jump to talkies.

She presents Joe with a script she has written, a biblical epic to be directed by Cecil B. DeMille and to serve as the vehicle for her return to the screen. Joe can see that the project is hopeless but agrees to edit the script for her. As time passes, Norma grows attached to and possessive of Joe, while Joe increasingly takes advantage of Norma’s wealth, even as he feels conflicted about his opportunism.

She presents Joe with a script she has written, a biblical epic to be directed by Cecil B. DeMille and to serve as the vehicle for her return to the screen. Joe can see that the project is hopeless but agrees to edit the script for her. As time passes, Norma grows attached to and possessive of Joe, while Joe increasingly takes advantage of Norma’s wealth, even as he feels conflicted about his opportunism.

The principal actors convey the story’s pathos beneath shadowy lighting, which creates a splendid, noirish atmosphere, while the energetic supporting cast lightens the tone with songs like “Let’s Have Lunch” and “The Lady’s Paying.” There are times when the orchestra nearly drowns out the actors’ voices, but on the whole the music is delivered well. In the role of Joe, Ashley Simms makes a good leading man and shines during the haunting title song. Russ Bohard is also good as Norma’s butler Max, and his low, booming voice makes “The Greatest Star of All” a surprise highlight.

But of course, Norma Desmond is the show’s centerpiece, and Annmarie Martin does a superb job of playing her. “With One Look” and “As If We Never Said Goodbye” are sung with all the feeling of someone who really believes that “I am big; it’s the pictures that got small!”

Sunset Boulevard
Thursday-Saturday at 8pm; Sunday at 2:30pm
Through Nov. 21
Palo Alto Players, Lucie Stern Theater, Palo Alto
$23–$32
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