Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham, Tuesday 7thFebruary 2023
Imagine Bob Dylan wrote Les Misérables but set it in 1930s dustbowl America à la Steinbeck. If you can do that, you’re some way to understanding what this show is like. Technically, a jukebox musical, raiding Dylan’s back catalogue and stringing songs together to tell a story, except it’s not, not really. The story, with script by the excellent Conor McPherson (of The Weir fame) could work as a straight play (Well, I’ll come to that later). The songs could stand alone without the story. And so instead of a conventional piece of musical theatre where the songs reveal character or develop the plot, what we have here is a straight play interrupted by concert-like performances of the musical numbers.
The setting is a guesthouse under threat of foreclosure by the bank. The proprietor Nick (Colin Connor) struggles with his estranged wife, Elizabeth, who has developed some kind of dementia, while cajoling his wannabe-writer and alcoholic son to get a job. Nick is waiting for his mistress’s ship to come in; she’s a widow waiting for probate and they have plans to set up a new guesthouse elsewhere… That American dream, you see. Meanwhile, Nick’s adopted black daughter is mysteriously pregnant, so he’s trying to marry her off to an elderly shoe repairer, for her own good. To top it off, there’s a storm brewing and two strangers arrive in the middle of the night, a former boxer and a bible salesman…
There’s more humour than you might expect in this tale of economic hardship, unemployment, racial prejudice, alcoholism, failed marriage, senility, learning difficulties, and just about every other miserable thing you can think of. In the first half, at least. But there are so many characters, there’s not really enough time for things to develop. It takes a narrator, Dr Walker (Chris McHallem) to provide exposition and to wrap things up at the end. There are some fine dramatic moments, well played, but apart from the general misery of it all, I’m not particularly moved. McPherson writes great scenes but, judging by this show, is not so hot when it comes to dramatic structure beyond these vignettes of misery.
And then there are the songs. Not Dylan’s greatest hits shoehorned in, but a careful curation of some of the more obscure tracks, rearranged to fit the period. The actors play instruments to augment the onstage band creating a rich sound, but it’s the singing that stands out. For example, songs like ‘Has Anyone Seen My Love?’, ‘Slow Train’ (wonderfully sung by Joshua C Jackson) and ‘I Want You’ (Gregor Milne) all knock your socks off. But it’s the ladies who really deliver the goods. Maria Omakinwa as the elegant widow Mrs Neilson is just about perfect, and so is Justina Kehinde’s pregnant Marianne. Surprisingly, perhaps, demented Elizabeth (Frances McNamee) almost steals the show with her vigorous dancing and superb vocals. I invariably prefer Dylan’s songs when performed by anyone other than the songwriter, so this score serves to remind me of Old Bob’s songsmithery.
It’s a show of two halves, then, beautifully presented, albeit on a dingy stage, and while I enjoy the drama and love the songs, the two halves don’t quite fit together. An excellent production, to be sure, but it’s a bit of a downer. You won’t be dancing in the aisles, but you might be uplifted a little by the gospel-style finale before the crushing bleakness of existence closes in.
Oh well. I’m off to write a show about the Cod War, using the music of The Smiths. Why not?
The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham, Wednesday 28th August, 2022
The Chichester Festival Theatre production of the Rodgers & Hammerstein classic comes to town and it’s an absolute must-see. The score reads like a Greatest Hits playlist. So many great numbers, many of which have become standards. Hearing them within the context of the drama renews their impact.
Set in World War II on an island outpost where the US Navy is itching for conflict with the Japanese, this is at heart a double love story, where both relationships are blighted by ingrained prejudice. We have firecracker hick Nellie Forbush falling for the urbane and educated plantation owner Emile de Becque, and handsome young lieutenant Joe Cable having his head turned by Liat, the beautiful daughter of camp follower Bloody Mary. Joe feels unable to marry the girl because of the way things are ‘back home’; Nellie is horrified to discover the late mother of Emile’s kids was, gulp, coloured. The revelation of Nellie’s racism comes as a real kicker at the end of Act One. This lively, perky girl, the life and soul of any gathering, who has entertained us and earned our affection is tainted by one of the most stupid attitudes going. It’s a real blow, like finding out someone you otherwise admire votes Tory.
Sad to say, the show’s message is just as relevant today. Cable’s song, You’ve Got To Be Carefully Taught gets to the root of a problem that still plagues society today.
As the suave Emile, Julian Ovenden oozes romance. Some Enchanted Evening has never sounded lovelier or more seductive. Gina Beck’s Nellie is irresistible, funny and perky, with her heart on her sleeve, her vocals both belting and nuanced. Rob Houchen’s Cable is spot on: the handsome young officer, dutiful and yet in love. Houchen’s voice is surely the finest working in musical theatre today. Sublime.
Joanna Ampil’s Bloody Mary brings plenty of comic relief, as does Douggie McMeekin’s Luther Billis. Ampil’s impassioned pleas to Cable to give her daughter a better life are heart-breaking, and her rendition of Bali Ha’i is bewitching.
The big chorus numbers are stirring: There is Nothing Like a Dame, by the men, and I’m Going to Wash That Man Right Out of My Hair, by the women. This production goes all out to deliver the goods. Ann Yee’s choreography, especially for the marines, is energetic, hoe-down like without being camp, and there are plenty of exotic touches to evoke the island setting.
Romantic, thrilling and humorous, with a strong social comment, South Pacific reasserts itself as a pinnacle of musical theatre in this magnificent production that hits all the right notes, musically and emotionally.
☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
Cable guy Rob Houchen and hair-washer Gina Beck (Photo: Johan Persson)
Charting the life story of one Cherilyn Sarkisian, this show gives us not one, not two, but three Cher-alikes, depicting the diva at three stages of her career. There is Millie O’Connell as Babe, taking us from bullied schoolgirl to budding hippie popstar. There is Danielle Steers as Lady, showing us Cher in the Sonny Bono years. And there is Debbie Kurup as Star, giving us Cher post-Sonny and beyond. Each performer is phenomenal but I find when they’re all on stage together, I can’t help but compare them: this one looks most like the real thing… that one sounds most like the real thing… The other one can do the hair toss… When they’re all chatting in that characteristic and highly mannered way of speaking, it’s a bit weird. What starts as a narrative device becomes an alienation effect, and I can’t warm to any incarnation.
Rick Elice’s book contains some zingers but on the whole I get the impression that Cher has had a miserable life. The script focusses on the low points, the relationship break-ups, the unemployment, while successes (winning an Oscar) are glossed over. Some songs fit their moments better than others, but we get all the hits – and more.
With Arlene Phillips directing and Oti Mabuse choreographing, as you might expect, the staging of the musical numbers is top drawer, energetically executed by an excellent ensemble. Production values are high, although the set, which mainly consists of row upon row of costumes in bags suspended on rails, gives the impression that the main events of Cher’s life took place in a dry cleaner’s.
As well as the three Chers, we get Lucas Rush bringing moments of tension as Sonny Bono, Jake Mitchell camping it up as Bob Mackie, and the versatile Sam Ferriday playing a range of parts including 70s rock yeti Greg Allman. There is strong support from Tori Scott as Cher’s mum, although she does repeat the key line, “The song makes you strong” a little too often. One moment is splendidly touching: the recently deceased Sonny duetting with Cher one last time, before she realises she’s no longer got you, babe.
Danny Belton conducts a splendid band. The story might come across as a bit of a downer but the music is relentlessly uplifting, culminating in the inevitable megamix that gets everyone on their feet and enjoying the party atmosphere. And there is much to enjoy, in the performances, in the music, but I feel unengaged and distanced from the material, and I love Cher as much as any gay man.
☆ ☆ ☆
Three Chers! Hip hip hooray! Danielle Steers, flanked by Millie O’Connell and Debbie Kurup (Photo: Pamela Raith)
Alan Parker’s much-loved film comes to the stage in this exuberant touring production that originated at London’s Lyric Theatre. As in the movie, the roles (the principal ones, at least) are played by child actors. It’s New York in the 1930s, a city dominated by the gangland rivalry between Fat Sam and Dapper Dan. The latter has the upper hand, thanks to the advent of a new weapon, the splurge gun. Sam’s men are getting splattered, or ‘splurged’ at an alarming rate. This is organised paintballing. While the deaths are quite graphically executed, so to speak, the actors get up again and walk off, just like a child’s game. Sam strives to regain dominance by tracking down the source of the new guns. Meanwhile, the eponymous Bugsy is trying to raise the dough to get his new love interest, Blousey, to Hollywood…
As crime boss Fat Sam, Albie Snelson throws his weight around convincingly, portraying the long-suffering, the short fuse, to perfection. He is supported by a host of characters played by the slightly-older chorus, ensuring his scenes are a lot of fun. Jasmine Sakyiama’s statuesque gangster’s moll, Tallulah has a dignity and knowingness to her, but lacks the jadedness of Jodie Foster, but this production keeps almost everything upbeat. As Sam’s rival, Dandy Dan, Desmond Cole has an unquestionable authority.
Mia Lakha’s Blousey, the wannabe star, proves she can deliver the goods, belting out a couple of torch songs that suggest this Blousey will go far. Special mentions go to Aidan Oti for his sweet but downtrodden Fizzy, and Mohamed Bangura as burly boxer Leroy.
In the title role, the diminutive Gabriel Payne gives a phenomenal performance, with singing and dancing that takes my breath away but not, apparently, his. It’s as though Billy Elliott has turned to crime. His acting his top drawer. In fact, across the board, the stylised Noo Yoik accents are done well, suiting the snappy dialogue of Parker’s script. While the screenplay revels in its own cinematic artifice, the stage adaptation acknowledges its theatricality, in an almost Brechtian way. Fat Sam having to change his own scene, kvetching about it as he does so, is just one example.
The score is marvellous, with all music and lyrics by Paul Williams, and it’s a treat to be reminded of his brilliance. Drew McOnie’s lively choreography brings us all the period tropes of the dancing of the era but strings them together in a manner that seems fresh and new.
Children acting as adults shows us the childishness of the adults’ behaviour, leading to nothing but death and destruction. I would have liked more splurge in the climactic bloodbath, for the stage to be awash with foam and custard pies, but the point is made. Society needs to put down its guns and ditch the territorial attitude if any of us is to have a chance to survive.
Exhilarating!
☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
Little big man: Gabriel Payne as Bugsy and Jasmine Sakyiama as Tallulah (Photo: Johan Persson)
Stratford Play House, Stratford upon Avon, Friday 6th May 2022
Stratford Musical Theatre Company turn their talented hands to the musical adaptation of the well-known Reese Witherspoon comedy film, in a vibrant production at the Play House, a venue that is more suited to bands and stand-up comedians. And so the staging tonight is minimal, leaving the floor free for the large chorus to occupy – director Georgie Wood has drilled her cast to maximum efficiency for getting things on and getting things off again, so the piece runs like clockwork.
It’s the story of Elle Woods who, dumped by her egotistic boyfriend, follows him to Harvard Law School in hot pink and hot pursuit, as though getting a law degree will win the chump back… Elle is faced with prejudice because of her looks and demeanour but she overcomes obstacles to prove she is top of the class, and hey, you don’t need a man to make you happy… The show’s message seems to be about not judging books by their covers and breaking down stereotypes, which is a pertinent point to make: to be one’s authentic self. Why then, does writer Heather Hach tarnish the piece with homophobic representations of LGBTQ+ people, who don’t get a chance to demonstrate they are more than the effeminate, posing, skipping fairies we are subjected to here? Signs, I think, of the material exceeding its show-by date. I cringe throughout the song Gay Or European which goes against the positive stereotype-busting message of the rest of it.
Leading the cast as the titular blonde Elle Woods, Vanessa Gravestock delivers an engaging, impressive performance, balancing the dumb-blonde looks with Elle’s innate intelligence. She’s an appealing presence with the star quality required by the role.
Other highlights (because she’s blonde!) include Christopher Dobson as the tough-talking Professor, effortlessly exuding his dominance and high status; Casey McKernan amuses as Elle’s cocksure ex Warner; Ian Meikle endears himself as mild-mannered love interest Emmett; Katie Merrygold is stonkingly good as Elle’s new BFF, Paulette Buonufonte; and Oliver Payne makes a scene-stealing appearance as delivery man Kyle.
It doesn’t matter what the cast does though, because any time a dog is brought on, it immediately upstages everyone else! And I can’t help wondering if the situation is stressful for the animals.
The chorus is great, filling the space with energy and performing Julie Bedlow-Howard’s lively choreography. In particular, a cheerleading number is splendid.
The singing too is all the more impressive when you realise the singers can’t see musical director James Suckling and the band, who are walled up behind the backdrop!
Unfortunately, there are missed lighting and sound cues, and this is not opening night where you can excuse a few hitches. Microphone coverage is patchy. It feels like the show could have done with at least one more technical rehearsal to make these elements of the production as sharp as the rest of it.
☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
In the pink! Vanessa Gravestock front and centre as Elle Woods (Photo: David Fawbert Photography)
Disney’s best musical is back, touring stages across the country in this revamped production that pulls out all the stops to impress. New sets and costumes dazzle and delight while remaining faithful to the original animated film, and all in service of the story. For example, the wolf attacks are represented here by some rather scary animations, rather than the dancers in furry headpieces and leg warmers of yesteryear! This is a production that uses bang up-to-date theatrical technology to deliver the goods, and boy, does it deliver!
Leading the cast in this performance is Grace Swaby-Moore as bookish, beautiful Belle, whose voice soars with clarity and purity befitting her character. She is more than matched by Shaq Taylor as the Beast, who manages to be intimidating, funny, and sympathetic all at once. He too has a rich singing voice, and his solo to close the first act is stirring stuff. It’s genuinely heart-warming to watch these two fall in love. I might be a little in love with Shaq Taylor, I freely admit.
A superb supporting cast keep the entertainment levels consistently at ten. Tom Senior’s vain and posturing Gaston is a hoot, forming a hilarious double-act with diminutive sidekick Le Fou, played by Louis Stockil, who is like a living cartoon character with energetic physical comedy and facial expressions that are purely delightful.
Gavin Lee’s louche Lumiere with his deadpan French accent is perfect — no one can hold a candle to him! — while Nigel Richards’s tightly wound Cogsworth is as charming as he is overwrought. Samantha Bagley’s Madame, half-woman, half-armoire, is a marvellously funny piece of character work. Sam Bailey’s gorblimey Mrs Potts the teapot, is sweet; her rendition of the title song while the title characters dance is a goosebumps moment I will never forget.
There are massive production numbers: Be Our Guest is a Busby Berkeley fever dream that brings the house down. Gaston is exhilarating. And the solo numbers are to die for. And you never feel as though the songs are getting in the way of the story. In fact, everything you see and hear is in service of the storytelling, which is what Disney does best. It’s fantastic to have a sizeable live orchestra playing the melodious, atmospheric score, under the baton of MD Jonathan Gill. It’s not every production that can afford such extravagance.
You can be as cynical as you like about the Disney money-making machine throwing money at the stage to make more money, but it’s the material that makes the show a classic. Chiefly the score by Alan Menken and the lyrics by the late Howard Ashman. This pair also created Little Shop Of Horrors, and brought their musical theatre sensibilities to the animated film. Therefore it’s a good fit for a stage adaptation, rather than being a story with some songs bunged in. There is a message about not judging by appearances but this is never forced or overemphasised.
The fairy tale magic is in full-force tonight, and it still gets me right in the feels no matter how many times I see it and it’s a real treat to fall under its upgraded spell. This funny, beautiful, exciting, romantic, spectacular and uplifting production is just what we need. Like Belle’s beloved books, the show takes us away from our present woes. I’m afraid it’s a case where five stars don’t seem like nearly enough.
The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham, Tuesday 4th January, 2022
The mighty Jim Steinman’s contribution to the jukebox musical genre strings together songs made famous by Meat Loaf, Steinman himself, and even Celine Dion. Each number is a mini rock opera in itself, but Steinman’s plot borrows heavily from Romeo & Juliet and also PeterPan & Wendy, I kid you not. Set in a post-apocalyptic world where chemical warfare has mutated some of the population into eternal 18-year-olds, (The ‘Lost’) who are very much the have-nots in this society, and the haves, represented by bigwig Falco and his family, their building towering over the landscape. Lost boy Strat falls for Falco’s daughter, Raven, and their relationship gives rise to conflict. There’s a nurse character too – Joelle Moses’s Zahara – and there’s also a Tink(erbell) whose jealousy of Strat/Peter and Raven/Wendy’s relationship leads to a betrayal, with Falco/Capulet/Captain Hook bent on destruction of the Lost (Boys). Curiously, Steinman’s song, Lost Boys andGolden Girls is absent from the score…
As leading man Strat, Glenn Adamson is a firecracker of energy with a powerful rock voice. He has a tendency to take his top off, Iggy Pop-style (something which Meat Loaf never did). Also strong is Martha Kirby’s Raven. Her rendition of Heaven Can Wait is superb. Unfortunately, the staging dilutes its impact. Much of the action is performed to camera and projected onto screens built into the set, and so, rather than having Kirby singing directly to the audience, she stands in an interior portion of the set facing away; yes, we can see her clearly on the screen, but the device serves to keep us at a remove from the emotional power of the song.
The live camera feed sometimes lends a rock video aspect to proceedings. At others, it’s a bit like reality TV. Mostly though, it’s intrusive and distracting, an example of the production getting in its own way, which happens now and then.
That apart, there is a lot to enjoy. The singing is top notch from everyone in this exuberant ensemble. Highlights for me include Joelle Moses and James Chisholm’s Two Out of ThreeAin’t Bad. Later, their Dead Ringer For Love generates a party atmosphere. Martha Kirby’s It’s All Coming Back To Me Now is impressively emotive. This power ballad becomes a delicate quartet when Adamson joins in, along with Rob Fowler and Sharon Sexton as Raven’s parents. Fowler and Sexton deliver the disillusionment and bitterness of the failing marriage of Falco and Sloane. Fowler is hugely enjoyable as the villainous patriarch, and he too is prone to getting his top off. Iggy Pop has a lot to answer for. Sexton’s Sloane starts off amusingly sloshed, but the characterisation is not without vulnerabilities and depths.
The absolute pinnacle of the show is the title track, which brings the first act to a stunning climax. Staged and sung to perfection, this is quintessential Steinman, big and brash, and heartfelt and overblown, and just sensational.
The dialogue is melodramatic and is declaimed in a heightened style. It could do with more laughs, but Steinman’s anthemic tunes and the gothic poetry of his lyrics prove irresistible and more than compensate for the shortcomings of the script. It’s rousing stuff and the cast sing their heads off, with energy that’s more infectious than a covid variant. Steinman was a genius as a songwriter and this searing, soaring show reminds us unequivocally of that.
☆☆☆☆
Glenn Adamson as Strat and Martha Kirby as Raven (Photo: Chris Davis)
The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham, Tuesday 16th November, 2021
Colin Higgins’s 1980 film came out when the world of work was very different. The story of three secretaries who take on their sexist boss and change working conditions within a corporation now plays out like a period piece. One of the film’s stars, Dolly Parton, provides the songs for this stage musical adaptation, introduces the action and gives a bit of narration via video. Video Dolly even sings the opening number, the famous title song, with the entire company joining in. It’s a rousing start and the best song in it.
Things soon slow down as characters are introduced. And they each must get their solo, slowing down the action. The women’s revenge fantasies about their sleazy boss become reality and what should be fast-paced farce is hampered by more songs and soul-searching.
Leading the cast is Louise Redknapp, flexing her comedy chops as Violet, the most straight-laced of the trio. Redknapp is in good voice and gives an assured performance while Stephanie Chandos’s Doralee Rhodes inevitably channels Dolly P, to amusing effect. Funniest of the three is Vivian Panka as new girl Judy, whose sweetness and naivete are swept aside when events get out of control. When all three sing together, the harmonies are wonderful. It sounds like Redknapp has found herself another girl band!
As the sleazeball Mr Hart for this performance, Richard Taylor Woods is deliciously abhorrent, although perhaps he’s too fit for the role. Give Hart a beer belly and a combover to make him thoroughly repugnant, I say! This would certainly heighten the contrast between Hart and Violet’s handsome love interest, Joe (Russell Dickson).
Julia J Nagle is in excellent form in a show-stealing portrayal of the sexually frustrated office snitch Roz, with a hilarious song about her lust for the boss. It’s a pity Roz is exiled for most of the second act.
But no matter how expertly the musical numbers are staged and how energetically they are performed by the hugely talented cast, what we get is a stop-start farce with some very funny scenes, interrupted by introspective songs that are tonally at odds with the comedy. What it has to say about sexual equality and harassment in the workplace has been, largely, overtaken by the real world, so the piece is no longer a clarion call. The women resort to kidnap to get their way, reminding us that many of our rights have been fought for by direct, often criminal, action. Think of the Suffragettes. And Stonewall.
Not every film has to be adapted into a musical. This one would work just as well, if not better, as a play.
★★★
On the job: Sean Needham and Stephanie Chandos (Photo: Pamela Raith Photography)
The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham, Thursday 11th November, 2021
Fifty years after its release, the Disney film gets a stage adaptation, and I approach it curious to see how certain key scenes will be performed (the underwater scene, the football match, the flying bed…) From the off, you can see we are in safe and creative hands. The show opens with an extended dumbshow sequence, detailing the wartime experience of the Rawlins children and their evacuation to the countryside… Hold on a minute: orphans evacuated to go and live with an eccentric, and end up having magical adventures…. Isn’t that The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe?
In this case, the eccentric who takes in the children is apprentice witch, Eglantine Price, who has learned her spells from a correspondence course. Price is played by a superb Dianne Pilkington, who makes the role her own — there’s not a trace of Angela Lansbury to her portrayal. An early scene when she attempts to fly on her mail-order broomstick while singing is especially funny. Pilkington is excellent throughout.
Members of the chorus bring on and take off pieces of scenery, items of furniture and props. The action is constantly flowing, with physical theatre helping to create effects like the bobbing along under the beautiful briny. Cinematic effects are translated to stage magic, with illusions and puppetry coming to the fore, so that characters can be turned into rabbits and so on. Directors Candice Edmunds and Jamie Harrison really flex their creative muscles to deliver the magic, in this inventive and delightful piece of storytelling.
Most of the songs from the film are here; ‘The Age of Not Believing’ remains one of the Sherman Brothers’ loveliest songs, and there are new songs by Neil Bartram which have a strong Sherman Brothers feel to them. Brian Hill’s book gives us the key plot points, with only a few alterations. On the whole, it works brilliantly, but I find it begins to sag in the second act. An example is Professor Browne (a splendid Charles Brunton) singing new number, ‘It’s Now’ in which he steels himself to take action, but only succeeds in slowing the action down! Hill also gives the story a different ending. I won’t say what it is but if you’ve seen the film version of another Sherman Brothers musical (the one about the flying car) you’ll know how this one pans out.
The underwater scene is there, tick box. Obviously, the football match doesn’t happen, but I would like more animals populating the island. And the bed is a marvel. There are many moments when you think ‘That’s clever’ and ask, ‘How are they doing that?’ — the show is as much about the magic of theatre as anything else (like turning to your imagination to get you through the tough times).
A hard-working chorus keeps things moving, including the wonderful puppets, And there is also some amusing character work from Susannah Van Den Berg as Mrs Mason and Jacqui Dubois as Mrs Hobday. Conor O’Hara, as eldest child Charlie, has a gorblimey accent but it’s not as strong as the one in the film so don’t worry. O’Hara has a powerful singing voice and delivers the emotional punch Brian Hill gives him. Charlie’s siblings (played, I think, by Isabella Bucknell and Haydn Court at this performance. Correct me if I’m incorrect!) also give assured performances.
It’s a magical night out for the family even if it does run a bit long, past younger ones’ bedtimes. It’s high-quality fun that will engage your imagination and touch your heartstrings, but not pluck them out!
★★★★
Giving it some stick: Dianne Pilkington as Eglantine Price. Photo Credit: Johan Persson/
Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford upon Avon, Wednesday 10th November, 2021
It’s fantastic to be back in the RST, as it reopens with this year’s big family show, based on the Kate DiCamillo novel. Young Peter Duchene visits a fortune teller who intrigues him with a reading involving his presumed-dead sister and an elephant. Next thing you know, an elephant is dropping through the roof of the opera house in a conjuring trick gone wrong—don’t you just hate it when that happens? Peter sees this event as a sign that his entire life has been a lie and sets out to face the elephant and learn the truth…
Holding things together is Amy Booth-Steel as an affable Narrator, breaking the fourth wall with such charm we don’t want to sue her for the damage. A strong ensemble includes delightful turns from Forbes Masson as a tightly wound, paranoid Police Chief, his underlings tumbling around him like Keystone Kops; Marc Antolin and Melissa James evoke empathy as childless couple Leo and Gloria; Sam Harrison’s fruity Count; Alastair Parker’s bumbling magician; Miriam Nyarko’s energetic orphan Adele; and Mark Meadows as Peter’s guardian, former soldier Vilna Lutz whose PTSD is startling, to say the least.
Villain of the piece is the mighty Summer Strallen’s Countess Quintet, who gets the most outlandish costumes. Strallen channels Queen Elizabeth from Blackadder II and Cruella de Vil, with shades of Mozart’s Queen of the Night in her decorative vocal work. It’s a stonking characterisation.
The Elephant itself is from the War Horse school of puppetry, with three operators bringing life to the pachyderm. The scale of the beast is impressive but more so is the way it ‘lives’; there is grace to this animal and sorrow. There is undeniably an elephant in the room with us. It’s a captivating creation, skilfully performed by Zoe Halliday, Wela Mbusi, and Suzanne Nixon.
Giving a phenomenal performance as protagonist Peter is the elfin-featured Jack Wolfe, giving the role a quirky youthful energy, who is nothing short of perfection. Instantly endearing, Wolfe is a true knockout when he sings, demonstrating beautiful vocal control and an impressive range. You get the feeling you’re watching someone who is going to become a massive star.
With book and lyrics by Nancy Harris, and music and lyrics by Marc Teller, the show captures the tone of DiCamillo’s wonderful book. Colin Richmond’s design work delivers the grim, grey city of Baltese, with atmospheric lighting by Oliver Fenwick. It’s Sarah Tipple’s direction that makes us identify with, laugh at, and feel for the cast of offbeat characters, playing the humorous notes broadly and the emotional points deftly. The score is reminiscent of Sondheim and Gilbert & Sullivan and is performed by a tight band under the musical direction of Tom Brady.
It all adds up to a hugely entertaining piece, that speaks to us of people in strange times looking for answers (and not always in the right places), of hope, of the things that unite us rather than those that divide.
Bum on a Seat 