A Christmas Carol - The Musical In Concert

Lyceum Theatre, London


*****


Music by Alan Menken
Lyrics by Lynn Ahrens
Book by Mike Ockrent and Lynn Ahrens
Based on the story by Charles Dickens

Robert Lindsay

Much like a rich brandy butter complements a fine Christmas pudding so too does Dickens’ classic Christmas fable nestle cozily into an Alan Menken score. His tunes are soaring, grand and just a little bit Disney-esque and in a story that’s all about redemption and humanity that’s a perfect fit.

What makes this concert performance of A Christmas Carol all the richer is the sumptuous sound of Freddie Tapner’s 32 piece London Musical Theatre Orchestra playing to support a stellar cast of musical theatre’s finest, alongside a 16 strong chorus. With just a hint of props and costuming, along with Mike Robertson’s ingenious lighting, the imagery of this show lies entirely within the audience’s imagination. 

Reprising his 2016 creation, Robert Lindsay is a gnarled and grizzled Ebenezer Scrooge, blossoming as he journeys to discover compassion and kindness. Lindsay brings a weathered London nuance to Scrooge and what makes his skinflint all the more compelling is that not only is he a top notch actor with immaculate timing and presence, he is also blessed with a stunning musical talent. 

A concert performance of any musical is all about acting through song and the assembled talent playing to a packed Lyceum offer a masterclass. In what is, probably, the UK’s definitive Bob Cratchit for the 2017 season, Michael Xavier delivers a cracking combination of power and pathos. Xavier knows the subtleties of working a massive West End crowd into an atmosphere of intimacy - and that he manages to capture the tragedy of Tiny Tim’s graveside aided only by Menken’s music is testimony to his craft,

The company’s other Christmas cracker is Sophie-Louise Dann as Mrs Fezziwig. The show’s writers have (mercifully) trimmed the original tale and where once the Fezziwigs were focal to the narrative of not only the Ghost of Christmas Past but also the Christmas Present phantom, here they play in just the historical chapter. Dann however relishes every word, lighting up the stage with a fabulous flamboyance.

In chronological order the three Christmas Ghosts, are played by Gemma Sutton, Hugh Maynard and Lucie Jones. Sutton manages what is in effect a therapy session for the old man, perfectly. As she whirls Robert Lindsay through Scrooge’s troubled childhood, bereft of love, the pair bring a sad, beautiful resonance to The Lights of Long Ago.

Maynard crowned in a holly wreath brings a haunting gusto to the stage, though it is the silent veiled Jones, signalling Scrooge’s impending doom that truly chills. A doubling up in the cast however does allow Jones (as Emily) a beautiful duet with Young Ebenezer (Cameron Potts), A Place Called Home, sung when the two were married many years ago.

Throughout, Tapner’s casting proves a delight. Glenn Carter brings an ugly yet compellingly youthful virility to Jacob Marley - rarely has this miserably spectre been played out so appealingly. Carter’s big solo Link By Link is Menken and Ahrens at their wickedest. Rebecca Lock and Nicholas Colicos turn in similarly top-notch cameos as Mrs Cratchit and Mr Fezziwig.

And the kids are professionally cute too. Tobias Ungleston is a cracking Tiny Tim, while Aaron Gelkoff who plays a number of Dickensian juveniles through the evening brings a beautifully voiced chutzpah to the stage that is made for Menken. Nods too to young Sylvia Erskine and Ivy Pratt, both also on top form.

When the show premiered in New York in 1994, it was to famously and festively return for ten subsequent sold out seasons. Lindsay makes this iteration of the timeless tale his own, and free of the wizardry of stage-crafted special effects, resting solely on the talents of its cast and orchestra, this musical concert becomes an enchantment.

Returns to the Lyceum for one further performance on Monday 18th December.

The Girls - Review

Phoenix Theatre, London


****


Written by Gary Barlow and Tim Firth
Directed by Tim Firth

Claire Machin, Sophie-Louise Dann, Joanna Riding, Claire Moore, Debbie Chazen

Make of it what you will, but in less than as many years, the West End has showcased two new British musicals both of which have been inspired by the true stories of naked women being presented in provocative tableaux. While Mrs Henderson Presents may have been drawn from the Windmill Girls' wartime titillating tonic, Gary Barlow and Tim Firth’s The Girls is of a more classic vintage, savouring the sauce stirred up when the mostly mature membership of a northern branch of the WI (Women’s Institute) set out to raise funds for a local hospital by posing nude for a calendar.

The true story of the Rylstone & District WI is the stuff of modern-day legend, inspiring Firth to have previously scripted both its film and subsequent stage play treatment (each titled The Calendar Girls). But he and Barlow are two northern lads who’d grown up together and despite pursue differing career paths, had long harboured the dream of co-writing a show. It was to be Barlow’s mum who convinced them of The Calendar Girls' tuneful potential.

Musicals are nothing if they do not explore the human condition - and The Girls pulses with a humanity that touches almost everyone in the audience. That it is written to be performed by predominantly older women - a casting bracket so often woefully overlooked in today's industry – is a joy in itself. Even more impressively, in filling the show’s six featured roles, the producers have done well to assemble a troupe who represent the cream of their musical theatre generation.

Joanna Riding plays Annie whose husband John (James Gaddas) succumbs to cancer, sparking the fund-raising idea. Not just a remarkable, spine-tingling performance, Riding’s role, perhaps more than any other in the canon, is also that of playing everywoman on stage. Her song Kilimanjaro touching anyone who's been bereaved and it is with the most understated pathos that she portrays the grief that is both her devastation and motivation. Her early career saw Riding garner Olivier awards and nominations by the handful. This powerhouse turn will likely see her nominated again.

Alongside Riding is Claire Moore's Chris, the feisty local florist whose idea the calendar is. Moore is another timeless West End star of remarkable pedigree who commands the stage.

Firth and Barlow’s songs have a sweet simplicity with an occasional touch of genius in the lyrics, their opening number Yorkshire, being a stirring tribute to the county’s rugged charm. There may be occasional moments of trite silliness in the wit, but these are more than made up for by the company's sheer excellence. 

Sophie-Louise Dann, herself an accomplished diva, is sensational as Celia, a retired stewardess, whose number So I’ve Had A Little Work Done is a spot-on paean to plastic surgery. Michele Dotrice’s elderly Jessie is similarly outstanding with her feisty, poignant rebuke to the advance of years, What Age Expects. Likewise, Debbie Chazen and Claire Machin bring their own characters’ anxieties to hilarious, even if at times painfully well-observed relief.

The supporting cast fill modest roles with an unassuming charm, Gaddas bringing a caring, nuanced stoicism to his decline that’s never mawkish. Likewise Josh Benson and Chloe May Jackson are a comic delight as teenage schoolkids, simultaneously discovering love and thwarting their mothers’ high-flying expectations.

Richard Beadle’s band infuses the hummable score with verve, while Robert Jones’ design, an ingenious confection of drawers and doors, outlines both the glorious majesty of the Yorkshire Dales with a cosy and well-worn intimacy of the local village hall.

Above all, the strength of this musical lies in how it is played by this wonderful cast. Against the darkest of backdrops, The Girls not only touches our hearts with its tragedy, it celebrates a self-deprecating yet very British resilience that squares up to adversity. 

In what is a story for us all, The Girls makes for a magical night of musical theatre, performed to perfection.

Away from showbiz, the Rylstone women, who set out only to generate a very modest hospital donation, have gone on to raise nearly £5 million to date. A proportion of the show's receipts are being donated to the charity Bloodwise.

Now booking until 15th July

Photo credit: Matt Crockett, Dewynters

Stephen Sondheim Society Student Performer of the Year Awards 2016

Sunday May 15th saw the Stephen Sondheim Society Student Performer of the Year Awards 2016 take place at London's Novello Theatre. 

Catherine Francoise was at the event for www.jonathanbaz.com and reports. 

Courtney Bowman (centre) and her fellow finalists

10 years on from the start of this innovative showcase awards competition,  it has evolved into a major influence, showcasing some of the  best final year student performers from the UK’s training academies, also discovering  new writers of songs and indeed complete shows. Stiles & Drewe’s writing partnership and career were majorly boosted when they won the Vivian Ellis prize in 1986 and their initiative in setting up the MTI Mentorship Award is to provide something similar for new writers in the 21st Century.

The platform the competition provides for young performers at the start of their careers is invaluable. Previous winners with now developing and established  careers sang Sondheim’s Old Friends from Merrily We Roll Along: Erin Doherty (2015) Corrine Priest (2014) Kris Olsen (2012) Alex Young (2010) Michael Peavoy (2009) and Natasha Cottrail performed Dougal Irvine’s 2012 Stiles & Drewe prize winning song Do You Want A Baby Baby? from the current production of The Busker’s Opera now playing at Park Theatre 4 years later.

We were also reminded that some non-winners have gone on to great things including Cynthio Erivo, now nominated for a Tony for her tremendous performance in the Broadway production of The Colour Purple (originated at the Menier Chocolate Factory).

From just 10 entrants in 2007 the competition has grown in numbers every year. There were 80 entrants this year of which 12 students were chosen as finalists as follows:

Courtney Bowman, Guildford School of Acting
Emily Day, Performance Preparation Academy
Lauren Drew, Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts
Abigail Fitzgerald, Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA)
Dafydd Gape, Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama
Eleanor Jackson, Bristol Old Vic Theatre School
Kirsty Ingram, Arts Educational Schools (ArtsEd)
Edward Laurenson, Guildhall School Of Music & Drama
Callum McGuire, Oxford School of Drama
Ashley Reyes, London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art
Adam Small, Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts
Tabitha Tingey, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland

Each singer was accompanied and supported by MD Mark Warman.

The 2016 Student Performer of the Year and £1000 was deservedly awarded to Guildford School of Acting final-year student Courtney Bowman. The fact that Courtney played corrupt mayoress Cora Hoover in GSA’s production of Sondheim’s Anyone Can Whistle in 2015 was clearly evident in her barnstorming performance of Me and My Town. Her second song The Driving Lesson was a hilarious tour de force by this year’s Best New Song award winner Tim Connor (although Tim actually won his award for a different song in the competition).  Courtney’s characterful and tremendously well sung performances lit up the stage. 

Bristol Old Vic Theatre School final-year student Eleanor Jackson was a very popular runner up, winning £500 with a beautiful, detailed rendition of the title song from Sondheim’s Sunday in the Park with George, and a wonderful song highlighted by the judges, by James Burn called More To Life.  A truly beautiful voice and compelling, intelligent actress.  Definitely another name to watch out for

Stiles & Drewe praised all the new songs and writers presented this afternoon, but wanted a particular ‘shout out’ of 3 of the songs (which I also loved!)…

Rivets by David Perkins, Dominic & Joe Male, a witty, wordy quirky song indeed which Dafydd Gape of Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama obviously enjoyed performing very much.

More To Life by James Burn, as mentioned sung wonderfully by runner-up Eleanor Jackson.

Little Wooden Horse by Chris Bush and MattWinkworth sung movingly by Royal Conservatoire of Scotland student Tabitha Tingey. 

I also very much enjoyed Wallpaper Girl by Rebecca Applin & Susannah Pears sung by Abigail Fitzgerald, studying at Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA)

Alongside the celebration of Sondheim’s work, the competition was also set up to showcase and promote new writing and this year Stiles & Drewe divided this award into two parts.  Tim Connor won his £1,000 Best New Song award for Back to School.  London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art Ashley Reyes who sang Back to School received a £100 bonus prize from The Newsome Family.

Perhaps the most exciting and intriguing winner was that of the tremendously valuable inaugural MTI Mentorship award, which will offer support, feedback, workshops, writing & progress evaluations and mentoring for full year, culminating in a professional industry showcase (who wouldn’t be ecstatic to win this award!).  Composer/lyricist Darren Clark and book writer Rhys Jennings for Wicker Husband, both looked excited, overwhelmed and truly grateful to receive this award.  We heard a tantalising taste of this new musical when Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts student Lauren Drew sang a very beautiful evocative song, My Wicker Man. George Stiles described the show as ‘a sort of Folk Tale’ and ‘other worldly with all sorts of possibilities’ ~ I personally can’t wait to hear more!

Demonstrating a wide range and variety of songs and performance skills we are certain to see some, if not all these finalist performers and writers in productions in the future. Sondheim is notoriously challenging to sing and whilst everyone acquitted themselves well, a few young singers could have possibly chosen songs which suited their ages and technical abilities as they are now rather than as they will be in a few years or even 10 years’ time.  Tempting as it is to sing the big Sondheim ‘torch songs’ there are so many wonderful songs to choose from, it might have served them better to choose lesser known songs that may have showcased them even more strongly than the iconic songs did. 

The tremendous calibre of the judges should also be noted. There is a separate panel of judges for each element of the competition enabling them to concentrate on their specific area.

Judging the STUDENT PERFORMER OF THE YEAR Edward Seckerson as chair was this year joined by Jason Carr, Sophie-Louise Dann, Anne Reid and director Thea Sharrock. 

Judging BEST NEW SONG were Don Black, Paul Hart, Lotte Wakeham, George Siles & Anthony Drewe. 

Finalist judges for the MTI STILES & DREWE MEMBERSHIP AWARD were Vicky Graham, Paul Hart, Luke Sheppard, George Stiles & Anthony Drewe.

A wonderful afternoon of young music makers was also further enhanced by truly wonderful performances from Julian Ovenden and Sophie-Louise Dann who finished the first half by singing the powerful soul-searing duet Move On from Sunday in the Park with George.  Sophie-Louise Dann also sang a touching new song by Stiles who accompanied her, Six and Half Inches from your Heart from a new musical called Becoming Nancy. Whilst the judges were deliberating Julian Ovenden sang two songs from Sondheim’s earlier work: Love I Hear from A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum (1962) finishing with a tremendous Being Alive from Company (1970).

There are so many people involved with the SSSSPOTY awards and everyone has to be named and thanked which unavoidably means fairly long lists of names and credits which could make it feel like an end of term school event.  As well as singing, Ovenden was a warm, witty and very charming compère and host.  Ovenden’s repartee, genuine love of Sondheim & Music Theatre and respect for all performers, kept things flowing whilst also ensuring we got all the necessary information.   

Congratulations to all writers and finalists. Musical Theatre is fortunate indeed to have Stiles & Drewe, Julia McKenzie and Edward Seckerson providing this tremendous opportunity and being so passionately committed to young performers and new writing.   And we are in for a treat with The Wicker Husband methinks!


Photo credit: David Ovenden

Made In Dagenham - Review

Adelphi Theatre, London

****

Music by David Arnold

Lyrics by Richard Thomas

Book by Richard Bean

Directed by Rupert Goold

Gemma Arterton and company

Made in Dagenham, the musical based on the hit film of the same name, takes this true story to a new level. A bluntly comedic book by Richard Bean is the backbone of this hearty British extravaganza, with the stage version packing a punch, far mightier and steeped in laughs than the movie. Rupert Goold’s direction is tight and full of energy throughout with the production being as bold as brass, unapologetically crude and yet wonderfully uplifting.

Bunnie Christie’s stunning set and costume design is adorned with huge over sized letters from the title that hang as a reminder to the roots of the play in Dagenham. Metallic walls of car-parts divide the stage, whilst a ring of oily gearboxes mechanically and monotonously revolve with a gentle drone above the opening scene.

Gemma Arterton stars as the Ford factory worker Rita O’Grady, who fights for equal pay for women when the factory girls learn that their jobs are being downgraded to ‘unskilled’. Arterton shines as an authentically British turn, notably in Everybody Out, a brilliantly upbeat number. 

Elsewhere a top-notch cast bring the nuances of their relatable characters into glorious relief. Sophie Stanton’s Beryl in particular, a loveably burly potty mouth brings the house down consistently from start to finish, though Richard Thomas’ sentimental lyrics in Letters fall short of the emotional plea that is needed from Rita’s husband Eddie O’Grady (Adrian der Gregorian) as he takes their children and leaves his wife, who has been overtaken by her political charge. The obvious "Dad cooked us chips on toast" line wears a bit thin.

In taking on Westminster as well as east London’s Dagenham, the show delivers cracking characterisations of Harold Wilson and Barbara Castle. Mark Hadfield is a superb bloated comic sleeze, constantly suggestively sucking on his pipe and delivering some superb one liners to punctuate the action. Cabinet minister Castle is played by the coiffured and charismatic Sophie Louise-Dann. Poised and sparky, the ever excellent Dann belts as required with a beautiful delivery.

Made In Dagenham is a fabulous show about history politics and passion that takes an inspiring tale of human endeavour and sets it to glorious songs and performances. The show is also wonderful proof, amidst a flurry of Broadway imports into the West End, that quality musicals continue to be made in Britain.

Now booking until 2015 - Tickets available from www.officialtheatre.com

Guest reviewer - Lauren Gauge

Sophie-Louise Dann - From Classic To Coward To Current

Crazy Coqs, London

****

Sophie-Louise Dann

The Crazy Coqs was packed to see Sophie-Louise Dann's return to the UK cabaret scene. Flame haired and clad in an immaculately tailored silk jacket and trousers her eclectic choice of songs opens with Its An Art from the little known Stephen Schwartz show, Working. It's a feisty number, presenting Miss Dann as a gamine take on Liza Minnelli in her pomp. Dann’s vivacity matched with her dazzling eyes gives an energy to a cabaret show that is not often seen. 

Showing a clear affinity with comic roles in song, Dann is a mistress of that challenging combination requiring the comedian's timing and dramatic talent to be married with the singer's vocal power and precision. Cole Porter's satirical Tale Of The Oyster was prised apart by the chanteuse, revealing the wit not only within the words but contained in Porter's melody too. When Dann then turns her firepower onto the Stephen Sondheim/Mary Rogers co- composition of The Boy From, her voice ascends the register with what sounds like just a hint of Keith Harris' Orville hatching. Dann's control of the comedy was at all times assured, never missing a note.

Dann has a glorious affinity towards the cornucopic composition. She closed her first act with the inspired number May I Have A Moment from her Olivier nominated performance in Lend Me A Tenor. Delivering snatches of countless famous arias, all of course recognisable to the cultured Crazy Coqs crowd who were in hysterics at her wondrous delivery. The whoops of applause as she gracefully brought the song to its conclusion had to be heard to be believed. In a similar theme, her act 2 number from Helen Goldwyn's World’s Biggest Fan, which showcases famously recognisable snatches from the best of musical theatre past and present, hints at the success Dann had achieved early in her career as a member of the Forbidden Broadway company.

Giving occasional masterclasses in performance at her alma mater, the Arts Educational School in London, one can only hope that her pupils’ summer workload includes a compulsory attendance to see "Miss" performing her gig. To hear the awesome belt that Dann can produce in both Back To Before, from Ragtime and subsequently in Kander & Ebb’s Ring Them Bells is to be in the presence of genius.

James Church provides the slickly effortless piano accompaniment to Sophie-Louise and on a balmy London summer's evening there is surely no finer way to pass the time than listening to one of the coolest divas around.

Sophie-Louise can be seen at the Crazy Coqs from July 30 to August 3 and show details can be found here

To read my profile of Sophie-Louise click here.

Sophie-Louise Dann - In Profile

Sophie-Louise Dann

Sophie-Louise Dann is one of England's rather well accomplished musical theatre actresses. A graduate of the Arts Educational School she has been plying her profession for over 20 years building up a fabulous international pedigree of work, yet it was only recently with a 2012 Olivier Awards nomination, that her name reached a long overdue wider circle of recognition.

Vocally, Dann is a treat to listen to. An admirer of Stephen Sondheim, the composer recently endorsed her casting as Dot in a wonderfully appropriate Paris located production of Sunday In The Park With George that he had re-orchestrated for a 47 strong orchestra. In a career that has encompassed a broad range of roles, Dann is especially proud of her achievement as Dot.

A sound soprano background offered her an entree into the world of Gilbert and Sullivan with the D'Oyly Carte company and through her career the presence and beauty of her vocal clarity has earned her the acclaim and respect of many celebrated peers, whilst her understanding of the wit of operetta provided a grounding in learning to master the subtle nuances of comedic timing and delivery. 

Performing in the London version of New York's Forbidden Broadway, the long running ever evolving satirical pastiche on famous musical theater works, defined her gift for a supremely talented shtick, which was to be deliciously exploited in the West End's 2011 musical premiere of Lend Me A Tenor. It is one of the recent tragedies of Shaftesbury Avenue that this fabulously constructed show only enjoyed such a short truncated run. In what was very much a supporting role Dann played diva Diana Divane, a character whose opinion of her own singing ability far outshone reality. In the show’s second act however, with her number May I Have A Moment, Dann delivered what was quite simply a good old-fashioned showstopper. The song was a whirlwind tour-de-force, demanding that the singer propel herself through snatches of the world's most famous arias (Verdi, Wagner et al are all in there) in two minutes. With her roller-coaster performance defining the technique of "acting through song”, Dann combined excellence with side-splitting hilarity, coming close to earning a standing ovation with 30 minutes of the show still to run. That a performer of this talent can still take time out to teach today's students at her alma mater Arts Ed., suggests that the future of British musical theatre performance is in safe hands indeed.

The autumn will see the actress, reserved by nature and who in her own words likes nothing more than enjoying the peace of her Bexhill-on-Sea life with actor husband Nic Colicos, return to musical theatre comedy as Margaret Jones in Molly Wobbly's Tit Factory. Paul Boyd's show was acclaimed in Belfast and Edinburgh last year, taking a skewed look at vanity, life and (most) religions too, with songs that are as offensive as they are eye-wateringly funny. In a role created by Leanne Jones just before she became too pregnant to act, it will be grand to see Dann give a more age appropriate perspective to Boyd's creation.

But before Molly Wobbly, Sophie-Louise Dann is in residence at London's Crazy Coqs for this week only. Her show From Classic To Coward To Current promises to touch on some of the great moments of her career, as well as some personal favourites. Suffice to say, that in  the confident company of Miss Dann, a classy combination of wit and musical excellence is assured.

Sophie can be seen at the Crazy Coqs from July 30 to August 3 and show details can be found here

Molly Wobbly's Tit Factory is at the Hackney Empire from September 20 to October 5 and show details can be found here 

Lend Me A Tenor - Original London Cast Recording - CD Review

*****

Book and lyrics: Peter Sham

Music: Brad Carroll

Producer: Stewart Mackintosh and Paul Gemignani

This review was first published in The Public Reviews

Lend Me A Tenor is a deliciously silly story that makes for a wonderful CD recording. The London premiere of this production was sadly short-lived which did not do justice to the multi-faceted talent that the show presented .

Set in Cleveland, Ohio, the local opera house prepares to welcome celebrated tenor, Tito Merelli, accompanied by wife Maria, to perform Otello. Impresario Henry Saunders is desperate for the opera’s financial survival, his daughter Maggie lusts for Merelli, whilst Saunder’s Jewish shmuck of an assistant, Max, loves Maggie. Add in Saunders’ numerous ex-wives, a local diva with an over-sized ego, and a plot that involves mistaken identities, suspected corpses, bedroom doors opening and closing and trousers around ankles and Peter Sham has assembled all the components of a hilarious traditional farce, set to music.

The essence of good comedy is timing and the comic brilliance of this show lies within a number of perfectly performed duets. Early in the show, with Merelli’s late arrival in town, ‘How Bout Me’ has an eager Max ( Damian Humbley) suggesting to a panicking Saunders that he could step into the star’s shoes. Matthew Kelly shines as the opera promoter who has seen it all. Merelli eventually arrives with wife, Michael Matus and Joanna Riding, and these two stalwarts of musical theatre sing a hilarious number Facciamo L’Amor, in which he professes love for her, whilst she in turn berates him for relentless womanising. The plot thickens, and when Merelli unwittingly finds himself having consumed a powerful sleeping draft and unable to perform,he encourages Max to take his role. Their number, Be You’self is the highlight of act one, as the opera singer coaxes Max’s talents from out of the shy backstage guy. When Humbley unleashes the true power of his voice mid-way through the song, the moment is musically spectacular. Not since Valjean confronted Javert have two men created such stirring passion.

Act two sees Humbley successfully play Otello, and following the performance Sophie-Louise Dann, as diva Diane DiVane, seeks to impress Merelli with May I Have A Moment?, a whirlwind of a performance in which she spectacularly sings a breathtaking pastiche of numerous famous soprano roles and arias.

The CD captures the wit and verve of a wonderful show whilst the liner notes provide a detailed synopsis supported by lavish show photography. This recording offers the opportunity to possess a perfectly captured moment of West End excellence.

Available from Amazon and iTunes and most distributors