Privates on Parade - Review

Union Theatre, London


****


Lyrics and book by Peter Nichols
Music by Denis King
Directed by Kirk Jameson

The Company

With the festive panto season finally on the horizon, why not consider skipping the traditional fairy-tale dames and instead head towards the Union Theatre for a snatch of Simon Green's take on Vera Lynn or Marlena Dietrich in Peter Nichols’ Privates on Parade. Set amongst the British Army in post WW2 Malaya and drawn from Nichols’ own experience, a song and dance unit of British soldiers is tasked with putting on morale-boosting variety shows to entertain the troops posted in the region.

Privates on Parade is very much a piece of its time, filled with wicked jokes and double-entendres every step of the way. The military is famous for its coarse humour and it is essential to context the show to its time when not only racism and sexism were rife, but homosexuality itself was a crime. So while modern day audiences may wince at Nichols’ dialogue, they should never forget his script’s historical accuracy nor its hints of underlying pathos.

Simon Green is superb as Captain Terri Dennis, the company’s leading “lady”. Green’s comic timing is spot on, along with his parodies of Dietrich and Lynn and his gin-swilling charm, irresistible.

There are equally good performances in the ensemble from Matt Hayden as the perfectly mannered, yet emotionally stifled Eric who is the epitome of a 1940's British gentleman while in the choreographed routines Tom Bowen is a joy maintaining an infectious onstage energy whilst playing the butt of continuous derogatory and racist abuse. As the honest and gentle Charles, who accompanies the entire cast on solo piano and thus truly enhances the authenticity of the “troop cabaret”, Tom Pearce is genuinely enchanting.

There are flaws here, with yet again the producers failing to conquer the Union’s unforgiving acoustics. Martha Pothen (the cast’s only female) and Samuel Curry do a convincing job as the leading romantic couple, but their occasional inaudibility makes it hard for the audience to warm to their charming "war-time love" narrative.

The show’s politics may speak of a time long past but Kirk Jameson’s assured direction nonetheless sees Privates on Parade offering one of the finest night’s entertainment currently to be found on London’s fringe.

Runs to 17th December

Reviewed by Charlotte Darcy

Photo credit: Toby Lee

Hey Old Friends: An 85th Birthday Tribute to Stephen Sondheim

Theatre Royal Drury Lane, London

****

The Company

A concert of this sort – large numbers of quite well known people along with full backstage back-up giving their services for charity (Esther Rantzen’s Silver Line) on a Sunday evening usually succeeds on adrenaline and goodwill and this one was no exception. With people such as Julia McKenzie, Nicholas Parsons, Sally Ann Triplett and Michael Xavier on stage you can’t really go too far wrong.

High spots included an entertaining and very clever top speed medley number by the astonishingly talented Martin Milnes and Dominic Ferris who say they pack 33 songs into less than five minutes although I didn’t actually count. Then there was the ageless, still elegantly outrageous Millicent Martin with the hilarious and impeccably articulated and timed “I never do anything twice”. Astonishing Bonnie Langford, now 51 – yes, 51 – can still sing perfectly while simultaneously dropping into the splits and later being suspended upside down by Anton Du Beke with whom she flirts outrageously in “Can that boy Foxtrot!” Also good fun is the pretend anti-Sondheim pastiche at the beginning by Kit and McConnel who kept it going as an intermittent running gag throughout the show. Haydn Gwynne did well with “Send in the Clowns” too – a different rendering from the more familiar Judi Dench one but moving with Daniel Evans as the recipient. Evans sings “Pretty Lady” nicely too with Simon Green and Michael Peavoy - how many canons are there in musical theatre? One of the things which stuck me forcibly at this concert is Sondheim’s remarkable range, versatility and ongoing originality. He’s still going strong at 85 and steering clear of all stylistic ruts.

At the centre of all this – and it’s literally centre stage with many exits and entrances taking place from behind and alongside it – is a full and very fine orchestra conducted by MD, Gareth Valentine and that makes a real difference. The show is also enhanced by the fine ensemble backing of students from Arts Educational Schools London who sing magnificently as they gather first class experience on stage with the pros.

Of course a concert of this sort is assembled and rehearsed in a very short time so it is never going to be perfect. There were too many mics around the orchestra so that sometimes the sound balance was wrong and singers were struggling to be heard. And the celebratory excitement of the event notwithstanding, at three full hours the show was too long and would have been better with at least one item cut from each half. We all know how lighting designers love stage smoke because they can beam pretty colours through it and get spectacular effects easily. Here it was overdone to the point of irritation.

Also puzzling, given the number of participants is that there weren’t more Very Big Names in the cast. Maria Friedman, Imelda Staunton and Michael Ball, for example, were conspicuous by their absence.

Guest reviewer: Susan Elkins

Titanic

Southwark Playhouse, London

****

Music and lyrics by Maury Yeston

Book by Peter Stone

Directed by Thom Southerland

Philip Rham

Earlier this year, the Southwark Playhouse slipped its moorings at London Bridge and headed south to Elephant and Castle. Now, in her first London production of 2013, Danielle Tarento cracks a bottle of champagne across the theatre’s bows with her production of Maury Yeston’s Tony winning show Titanic taking up an August residency at the venue.

This producer's form remains impeccable. Selecting trusted talent Thom Southerland to envision the work and with Cressida Carre’s choreography, David Woodhead’s inspired design all railings, upper decks and rope and the lighting wizardry of Howard Hudson, the essence of The White Star Line’s doomed flagship is beautifully evoked.

Yeston premiered his work on Broadway in 1997, just a few months before James Cameron’s movie was to ensure that the whole world knew what happened on that fateful night in April 1912. Whilst Yeston's show opened before the movie, watching his musical in 2013 we find that it teaches us nothing new. We already know that many of the ship's officers were noble, that the owner was ruthless, that some men were heroic and that passengers in 3rd class and steerage were treated appallingly. Yeston's melodies (mostly unfortunately forgettable) don't age well and not for the first time his lyrics are found to be lacking in substance. An epic story demands a deep and epic treatment. Yeston's analysis runs aground in very shallow waters.

So hurrah for Tarento and her team. Philip Rham quite literally is Captain Smith. His bearded poise and weary acceptance of Ismay, the owner’s, persistent demands for reckless speed through a treacherous ice field, is worth the price of admission alone. Rham’s patrician Captain exemplifies both the steel and responsibility of his command yet also the elegant and dignified courtesy of the time. Simon Green’s despicable Ismay is another fine performance, even if he has been written as little more than a pantomime villain. Where Smith is a finely fleshed out man of handsome character, Green's Ismay can at times be imagined stroking an evil moustache as his lust for speed and profit over safety condemns the journey, such is the cliche of his character. Greg Castoglioni is Andrews the ships architect, one of several portentous players who caution Smith against reckless speed. His is a measured portrayal of a man placed in desperate circumstances.

The passenger list has some first class gems. Celia Graham maintains her reputation for excellence as Alice Beane a desperate social climber, whilst below decks Victoria Serra as a shamed pregnant Irish lass off to make a new life in the New World puts in a stylish turn along with Shane McDaid as the charming young lad who falls for her. Veterans Judith Street and Dudley Rogers provide a rare moment of authentic poignancy as elderly millionaires who reject the lifeboats, electing for an icy death in each others arms and James Hume as their champagne pouring steward also puts in a convincing and subtly understated performance of profound tragedy.

The design is brilliant in its suggestion of the ship's famous lines. Tarento avoids expensive gimmickry, relying instead on a pure simplicity of image and the audience's fertile imagination, pre-fuelled thanks to our familiarity with the Cameron oscar-winner. When her Titantic finally and famously rears up, with horizontal decking horrifically becoming the sheerest of deathly cliff faces, the effect is a perfect combination of desperately beautiful stagecraft and Southerland's classy direction.

Like a classic albeit tragically true fairy tale, we know Titanic's story before we take our seats. Tarento's take on history is nothing less than respectful and humbling and she tells it with production values that continue to re-define excellence in London's off-West End.


Runs until 31 August 2013