David Bryan talks about The Toxic Avenger (and Bon Jovi)

David Bryan

As The Toxic Avenger returns to London's Arts Theatre, I spoke with composer and Bon Jovi keyboards ace, David Bryan

JB:     David , what attracted you to write The Toxic Avenger?

DB:     Joe DiPietro and I, my writing collaborator, we were working on Memphis - a big epic story about the birth of racism, and the birth of rock and roll. We had done some productions of it, and then we were waiting for it to come onto Broadway when Lloyd Kaufman, the man behind Troma Films, he came in and pitched the idea about doing a musical.

So Joe wrote a treatment for it and asked : “can we make it the way we want? Not, the story from the movie," and Lloyd agreed. So we set to work and it was a chance for Joe and I really to write comedy.

It's funny as hell, there's an underlying love story, and the moral of it, still, is about global warming. 

But, it's all set in comedy, and it was a blast. We did it really quickly, and it was great fun.

JB:     The Toxic Avenger is all about satire. What satire and humour appeals to you and who were your comic influences?

DB:     It's funny, Joe and I, we're the same age, we're from New Jersey, and grew up on the same comedians. When I grew up I had more comedy records than rock records!

Growing up it was Eddie Murphy. And then the Saturday Night Live crew was just funny as hell. But, I always loved the side of comedy that was just an intelligent way of looking at things from a different viewpoint. It's great, and it's a great thing to watch people laugh. Laughing is a great therapy.

JB:     The Toxic Avenger is very politically incorrect. How important is political incorrectness in modern comedy ?

DB:     What I think what we did with our piece, was that we mocked everybody. We took the piss out of everybody and everything that we could.

We mocked everything, so no one could accuse of us of bullying on any one angle. If you mock  everything, then it's funny.

JB:     Do you sense any trend in how comedy today is shifting? Do you feel that there is a greater sense of what can and cannot be laughed at in today's era?

DB:     The comedians are the ones that are supposed to push the envelope. All my favourite top comedians were the ones who did push that envelope, and say stuff that everybody thinks, but doesn't want to say. I don't have a problem with that as long as it's done in an intelligent way.

JB:     You’re famous for being the keyboards player in Bon Jovi. Tell me the difference between writing songs for a show and albums for a rock band.

DB:     Same thing. It's just writing a song.  I don't do any research. Joe and I sit down and go, "Okay, here's the character, here's the dilemma, or the journey, or what's the purpose of why this character needs to go from point A to point B, and what's driving him?" I think it's really a human story, if you will. I just put myself in the shoes of that character, and just write it, and let it all come out.

JB:     A good musical has a very clear book that the songs work around. How does the creative arc compare of writing songs for a show compare with the arc of writing songs for a Bon Jovi album?

DB:     Yeah, anytime we approach an album, it's always a beginning, middle, and end and there is a narrative.

In a musical, you have different characters and it’s a little more challenging writing for men, for women, for monsters (!) - it's a whole different world.

But the songs and the story keep evolving together. It's not like one's written in stone, and then the other isn't. We are the kind of writers that don’t just go, here's the story, and now we're going to step out of the side of the story, and here's a song. Our songs always push the characters ahead.

JB:     Within Bon Jovi do you contribute much to the composing?

DB:     Yes!  I classically trained for 15 years, so I understand music. It's really helped in that that is what really separates us from a guitar band, and then you add keyboards. All the big songs that we've had in records, with keyboards you can colour the emotion, really paint a picture. Even in the beginning ... A standout example would be, Wanted Dead or Alive. At the beginning you hear wind, and strings, and all of a sudden you're in a Western. That's what I bring to the table and I love it.

JB:     David, thank you and I wish The Toxic Avenger every success at the Arts Theatre.

The Toxic Avenger plays at The Arts Theatre until 3rd December 

Read my review of The Toxic Avenger here

Photo credit: Irina Chira  

The Toxic Avenger - Review

Arts Theatre, London


****

Book and Lyrics by Joe DiPietro
Music and Lyrics by David Bryan - Click to read my interview with David Bryan
Directed by Benji Sperring

Emma Salvo and Mark Anderson

The recent spate of far from traditional, original musicals - from Book of Mormon to Urinetown - is the best thing to happen to the genre in years. While Carousel will always remain a joy and Singin’ In The Rain a classic, it is fun-fests like The Toxic Avenger, which tells the tale of geek turned environmentally-challenged superhero with tongue firmly in cheek and energy levels set to maximum, that will bring in the new audiences that West End theatre needs.

With a cast of five and live band of even fewer, it’s a wonder in itself that this Southwark Playhouse transfer manages to fill the bigger Arts Theatre stage with as much energy and sheer delight as this ensemble does. It’s no small tale they have to tell, as small town nerd Melvin takes on the corrupt establishment of New Jersey (Who Will Save New Jersey) who are taking bribes from the Manhattan elite so they can continue to dump their waste across the Hudson River. A run in with the town thugs (Get the Geek) lands Melvin in some hot water - well, toxic waste - transforming him into the well meaning if murderous titular character. This fortunately takes his relationship with blind love interest, Sarah, to the next level, despite the smell, (My Big French Boyfriend) but unfortunately prompts the Mayor to seek his particular kryptonite (Evil is Hot). It’s seriously fun, but that’s where the seriousness ends.

Before we get onto the main characters there is the sheer delight that is the dazzling duo of Ché Francis and Oscar Conlon-Morrey, who bring to life the entire supporting cast from pitchfork armed farmer to ringleted folk singer with a fantastically flamboyant flair. Every persona the pair perform is a cartoon through and through, especially Conlon-Morrey’s bouncing and comically vigilant cop, who is the epitome of the grown up Baby Brent from the film Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs, and Francis’ nail-filing diva complete with killer legs, heels and pout.

Toxie himself is played by Mark Anderson who somehow manages to maintain the sickly sweetness from Melvin’s pre-toxic geeky days through to the savage and, ahem, more well endowed days of his Toxic Avenger incarnation. His love interest Sarah’s unfortunate blindness brings about the biggest belly laughs as the fourth wall is repeatedly broken to address the ridiculousness of what is happening, from lost canes to nearly walking off the stage. The bouncy and hilarious Emma Salvo is a walking comedy-timing masterclass. The frustration she portrays as Toxie repeatedly foils her attempts to touch her face has the audience absolutely roaring.

This self aware show is full of big voices, dances and farcical falls, with fun at the forefront. The stage is simple, radioactive green and practical, allowing even the blind to make scene changes and the band to join in on the action from time to time. The score is upbeat throughout save for the surprisingly tear-inducing You Tore My Heart Out, where the lyrical genius of Joe DiPietro meets the power ballad talent of David Bryan, best known for his keyboard playing for Bon Jovi.

The Toxic Avenger is unapologetically silly, but it is still a shame when undoubtedly clever lyrics are lost in the enthusiasm and bumbling prop moments take away from the purposeful ones. That’s not to say that this show needs to be flawless to be enjoyed. The script gives a very talented group of performers enough to play with and you can’t help but appreciate every minute, especially when the incredible Natalie Hope’s vengeful Mayor meets Natalie Hope’s sassy Ma and glorious chaos ensues. The silliness is as intoxicating for the cast as it is for the audience.

Runs to 3rd December

Reviewed by Heather Deacon

Photo credit: Irina Chira

The Toxic Avenger The Musical - Review

Southwark Playhouse, London


****


Book and Lyrics by Joe DiPietro
Music and Lyrics by David Bryan
Directed by Benji Sperring

The company

There's a fabulous pedigree behind the satirical jaunt that is The Toxic Avenger - The Musical. Inspired by the Troma Studios b-movies of the same name and with music and lyrics by David Bryan (he of Bon Jovi) and Joe DiPietro (both of Memphis fame), the show is an irreverent pastiche of late 20th century America.

Set against the toxically polluted backdrop of “Tromaville”, New Jersey, Mark Anderson is Melvin Ferd The Third, inadequate but essentially good, who gets dropped into a vat of toxic waste by hoodlums. He survives the dunking but emerges as Toxie, a hideously deformed mutant with superhuman powers who sets out to win the heart of Sarah, a (conveniently) blind librarian. To describe the show as tongue in cheek could almost be an obtuse reference to the grotesque prosthetic (good work from Jonathan Moriarty North's studios) that Anderson sports as Toxie. But this musical's not to be taken seriously and it's only to be seen by those who share that guilty pleasure of liking like their comedy served bloody, with a large helping of political incorrectness on the side.

Deliberately setting out to spoof itself by requiring a cast of only five, Anderson along with Hannah Grover who plays Sarah, are the only actors allowed to stay in role throughout. The remaining multitude of characters are made up by Ashley Samuels and Marc Pickering who spin through costume changes with breathtaking speed and Lizzii Hills who spends her time alternating between Tromaville's Mayor and Melvin's mother - and who closes act one hilariously as her two characters fight (each other!) in a number aptly entitled Bitch/Slut/Liar/Whore.

There's merciless mockery in Bryan and DiPietro's lyrics and the show drips with wit and some killer lyrics. That Toxie’s stench, can be rhymed not only with “french” but also with “mensch” is a stroke of genius. If some of the satire sometimes flags, when it’s good it’s inspired. Pickering’s appearance as a Folk Singer with The Legend Of The Toxic Avenger is a spot-on tribute to John Cougar’s Jack and Diane, whilst Anderson’s You Tore My Heart Out will stay with me for a long time. 

The creative work is classy too, with Mike Lee’s set design, all skyline, vats, and steam-belching oil drums cleverly re-creating New Jersey’s polluted shoreline. Set above the stage, Alex Beetschen’s band make fine work of a score that’s epic in its range.

If you enjoy comedy-horror that while being carefully (and expensively) crafted, refuses to take itself seriously, you'll love The Toxic Avenger. Not for the easily offended, this is top-notch trash! 

Runs until 21st May

Picture credit: Claire Bilyard

Love Me Tender – Review

Churchill Theatre, Bromley 

****

Based on the book by Joe DiPietro

Directed by Karen Bruce

Love Me Tender's Ensemble

Based on the music of Elvis Presley, Love Me Tender is a juke-box musical that tells several love stories at the same time and all set in “a small town no-one’s ever heard of in the middle of nowhere.” We’re introduced to its inhabitants who are resigned to a life of enforced conservatism and where frivolities such as music, dancing and "public necking" are all forbidden - until the arrival of Ben Lewis’ Chad, an Elvis-esque roustabout to shake things up. 

At times the story verges on the ridiculous, particularly in the second half when the plot races desperately towards a conclusion that reconciles eight characters' love stories. Yet it's not entirely formulaic. There is an element of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night thrown into the mix, as Natalie (Laura Tebbutt) masquerades as Ed which in turn delivers a surprising and pleasing splash of female empowerment as she exercises a choice that utilises the confidence and freedom she found as Ed.

The cast led by Mica Paris and Shaun Williamson is incredibly strong across the board, with several standout singers including Tebbutt and Mark Anderson ensuring that the production is not overly reliant on the big hitters. Though when Paris takes the stage for her solo, the effect is one of awe; her voice is truly incredible. 

The musical arrangements are well done and rock and roll is neatly packaged up for the theatre. The choreography (Karen Bruce and Elliot Nixon) captures the retro vibe while injecting it with a dose of the contemporary. 

Morgan Large’s set design is complex and ambitious, but the risks more than pay off. There are also several memorable and comic human set fixtures, such as two ranch-style doors held by two actors, which swing open and shut to mark the entrances and exits of several characters. 

Although the main focus of the story is love's ability to conquer all, the cheesiness is often offset by lots of clever wit and dry humour, delivered with perfect comic timing. 

At Bromley this week, before heading out on tour – Love Me Tender makes for a fabulous night in the theatre!

Guest reviewer: Bhakti Gajjar

Memphis - Review

Shaftesbury Theatre, London

****

Book and lyrics by Jo DiPietro

Music and lyrics by David Bryan

Directed by Christopher Ashley

Beverley Knight and Killian Donnelly

The history of the United States’ black population gaining civil rights is fertile ground for musical theatre. As The Scottsboro Boys opens in the West End dealing with an horrific injustice, so now the Tony-winning Memphis arrives from Broadway. Set in 1950’s Tennessee a deeply segregated Southern state, the redneck white folk don’t tolerate “race music”. No melting pot, Memphis seethes with racist oppression and it is against this backdrop of hatred and lynching that DiPietro and the Bon Jovi keyboards player Bryan have created their tale.

Beverly Knight proves why she’s one of the UK’s greatest soul singers. As Felicia, a girl with a gift of a voice and a quietly acknowledged sensation amongst those who’ve heard her sing, Knight owns every song with her hallmark power. Her opening number Underground defines both the passion of her performance as well as setting the scene for the illicit network of clubs in the city that provide discrete stages for Black music. Her act one solo Coloured Woman is an inspired performance of on-stage soul, rarely witnessed and unforgettable.

Loosely based on the real life radio broadcaster Dewey Phillips, Killian Donnelly is Huey Calhoun, a white disc jockey with a passion for African-American music and who, in a tale woven around fantastic whimsy and some brutally ugly realities, champions Felicia’s singing, breaking down some of society’s segregating barriers and getting her heard on mainstream “center of the dial” music stations. Donnelly has taken leading roles in some of London’s biggest leading shows, but unlike Knight’s pop star fame, outside of the showbiz bubble and hardcore West end fans he is barely known. His casting as Huey however proves to be not only brave, but also inspired. He has a gorgeous blues sound, displayed early on in The Music Of My Soul along with the confidence and poise to lead all his numbers. His character demands an almost geeky appearance, but it’s a veneer that cloaks a Tarantino-esque excellence.

A lot of money has been invested in Memphis and it shows. The sets are clever and the musical numbers that range in style from ranging from rock to spiritual are brilliantly arranged with Sergio Trujillo repeating his Broadway choreography. The first half of the show is stunning, leading to a pre-interval denouement that devastates in its emotional power and musical brilliance. Rarely has one staggered out for a half time G&T quite so moved. Act two however lacks dramatic substance and as the story unwinds there is little to stir the soul other than Clare Machin’s standout performance in Change Don’t Come Easy where, as Huey’s hitherto racist mother, she sings of her shift towards tolerance and acceptance.

Memphis is unquestionably a fine West End treat of a show. With a sensational cast and first rate production values it makes for a grand and moving night at the theatre.


Now booking until 2015