Alysha Umphress, as sports reporter Gloria Thorpe, and the company of 'Damn Yankees' perform at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater. The updated Broadway musical runs through November 9. Photo by Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman

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“For such a pact…subscribe thy name with a drop of blood.” So says the demonic Mephistopheles to Faust, a character insatiable for knowledge in Goethe’s classic play in which the devil proposes that Faust sell his soul, placing temptations such as wealth, fame, power and luxurious food in his path.

The 1955 musical Damn Yankees translated the Faustian plot to mid-20th-century America via a die-hard baseball fan who wants to see his team, the Washington Senators, win the pennant against the New York Yankees.

Arena Stage has now brilliantly updated this story to more recent times: Everyman Joe Boyd sells his soul to the devil to transform himself into a young athlete of great prowess to help his favorite (and perennially losing) team, the Baltimore Orioles, win. He misses his wife, though, and searches for a way out of the deal.

Adapted by Will Power and Doug Wright and directed and choreographed masterfully by Sergio Trujillo, Arena Stage’s musical Damn Yankees cleverly engages the audience, which at one point sings along with “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” and cheers for the “home team.”

Strong performances

Boyd is played wonderfully by Quentin Earl Darrington, while his young alter-ego, Joe Hardy, is performed energetically and in fine voice by Jordan Donica. His duet with Bryonha Marie (who portrays Boyd’s wife, Meg) is powerful and moving, lending great poignancy to the production.

Rob McClure as the devilish Applegate is a standout performer of the show; he is simultaneously charismatic, funny, amiable, demonic and sneaky, all in one. Musically, he comes into his own with his wickedly hilarious “Those Were the Good Old Days,” recounting some of his favorite moments (the horrific ones!) of human history.

The femme fatale in the show, Lola, is played seductively but with redeeming “heart” (one of the key themes of the play) by Ana Villafañe. She sings and dances her signature numbers, such as “Whatever Lola Wants,” with great aplomb. She is particularly gifted in her chemistry with Donica’s Joe and McClure’s Applegate in “Two Lost Souls” and the “Act One Finale.”

Alysha Umphress plays a strong Gloria, a reporter who must balance her love of the Orioles ball team with frank recognition of their challenges and failures.

Immersive setting, modern touches

At Arena, the Fichandler Stage is a theater in the round, with a relatively restricted space for props, sets and actors. But the combined efforts of set designer Robert Brill, lighting designer Philip S. Rosenberg and projection designer Peter Nigrini turn the stage into a decided advantage with simple but brilliant special effects, excellent costumes and projections which help the audience imagine themselves in a ballgame setting. In a way, it’s a better venue than a Broadway theater.

Damn Yankees ran on Broadway for a year and a half, earning eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical. During the 1994 Broadway revival, actor Jarrod Emick won a Tony for Best Actor for his portrayal of Joe Hardy.

While the plot of this production is updated to include references to sports doping, racism and other concerns not included in the Broadway version, the music remains loyal to the original score, with the orchestra wonderfully directed by Adam Rothenberg. The musicians proved adept at both the poignant songs as well as the wonderful mambo numbers such as “Who’s Got the Pain?”

Arena’s show is highly successful in retaining the virtues of the original work while updating a few key elements to make the production a home run (pardon the pun) for a modern audience.

Damn Yankees runs through November 9. Although no senior discounts exist, discounted tickets are available in person two hours before curtain for most performances, subject to availability. In addition, discounts of 20% off are available for veterans, educators and first responders.

For tickets, visit arenastage.org/yankees or call the box office at (202) 488-3300.