All My Sons

Open Air Theatre, London

****

Written by Arthur Miller

Directed by Timothy Sheader

Tom Mannion and Brid Brennan

Challenging perceptions of right and wrong and forcing us to question personal choices, Arthur Miller’s All My Sons, his 20th century scorching classic on lies, deceit and integrity, is given a powerful revival by Timothy Sheader at the Open Air Theatre. The Regents Park setting suits the play, with Lizzie Clachan's simple set of a square lawn underpinned by long mangled roots being dominated by a huge Norman Rockwell image of a ‘perfect’ 1940’s post-war smiling family. The irony is profound.

Tensions rise as we encounter the Keller family, seemingly close and still grappling with the loss of son Larry some three years after his death. Surviving son Chris sensitively portrayed by Charles Aitken wants to move on with his life but is thwarted by a mother who refuses to accept that Larry is dead and by his father Joe who doesn’t want to rock the boat. Chris seeks inspiration and something beautiful to come home to, whilst Joe (a finely tuned performance from Tom Mannion) just wants something tangible to pass on that will have marked his existance. But soaring around this family are guilty secrets and a history of hideous compromises. With a nod to Greek tragedy and a grim inevitability, Miller skilfully weaves the threads that will lead to Joe Keller’s destruction. This is a harrowing production of a devastating play.

Brid Brennan’s powerful, intense matriarch Kate, grief stricken and in deep denial, tries to hold her family together as the overhead roar of Heathrow bound jet planes adds an unexpected layer of poignant pain to the events on stage. Powerful work too from Amy Nuttall as girlfriend Ann, harbouring her own devastating secret and also from Andy McKeane as her brother George.

Nick Powell’s atmospheric music is ominous throughout, complementing Sheader’s interpretation, with the evening proving to be coruscating theatre.  Effective productions of Miller should never be easy to watch and this production is as harrowing as it is brilliant.

Runs until 7th June 2014

Miss Saigon

Prince Edward Theatre, London

****

Book and lyrics by Alain Boublil

Concept, book and music by Claude Michel Schonberg

Lyrics by Richard Maltby Jnr

Additional lyrics by Michael Mahler

Directed by Laurence Connor

Jon Jon Briones as The Engineer

Cameron Mackintosh is the consummate showman. His re-launch of Miss Saigon, some 25 years after it first landed on a London stage has already recouped its reported £4.5million investment and it appears that not a penny has been wasted. His excellent cast is large and immaculately rehearsed, whilst the design and technical wizardry of his creative team is further evidence of the capital's world class reputation in stagecraft. 

The show re-works Puccini’s classic tale from Madam Butterfly, setting it amongst the melee of the fall of Saigon in 1975, and introducing The Engineer, an (anti) hero Eurasian pimp and one of the finest characters to be written for musical theatre in recent years. A man whose only loyalty is to himself and to whom knowing and exploiting the weaknesses of all men is second nature, he dreams of a new life in the USA. His portrayal in this production by US actor Jon Jon Briones is a revelation. Briones holds the audience in the palm of his hand throughout, with his act two showstopper The American Dream being a glorious comment upon Western greed and cynicism. 

Eva Noblezada plays Kim, the virginal Saigon bar girl caught up in a whirlwind romance with GI Chris, and who falls pregnant just as her lover is flown out of Vietnam with the US withdrawal. Noblezada, who incredibly is making her professional stage debut in the role, is gorgeously convincing and fabulously voiced as she evolves from timid country girl to fiercely protective mother. Her character’s story is not as striking as her performance however and there is too much of her journey that is clichéd melodrama, with plotlines that defy credibility. 

The beauty of this show though lies in its staging and in the talent that Mackintosh has assembled on one stage. Bob Avian’s original choreography has been re-worked and the clarity of his vision is no better demonstrated than in the phenomenal routines of a flag waving communist army in act one’s The Morning Of The Dragon, contrasted with the dollar-bill and Cadillac extravaganza of the second half’s The American Dream, both numbers being sensational. Amidst much (occasionally tiresome) musical motif repetition, other tunes stand out, notably The Movie In My Mind, sung by Kim and fellow bargirl GiGi a perceptive performance from Rachelle Ann Go,  whose plaintive lyrics speak too of the dream to flee their Saigon poverty and build a new life in the USA, the land of the movies.If The Engineer is the show’s best creation, then this number is arguably one of its best songs.

Miss Saigon also bears a nod to the legacy of the Bui Doi, the mixed-race kids that feckless GIs left behind. Act two opens with Bui Doi, an anthemic number that champions these youngsters’ cause and in which, 25 years ago, John played by Peter Polycarpou broke hearts at Drury Lane as he sang. Today’s John is played by Hugh Maynard and the song is a disappointing rush, set to a beat that is at odds with the melody’s pulse. As with Boublil and Schonberg's Les Miserables, the entire production is set to music, with nearly every line of dialog in rhyme which often proves a naïve distraction. Along with the 2 minute gimmick of an on-stage helicopter these are a reminder of just how far audience expectations have grown over the last two decades. Gimmicks are out and strong songs are in – hence the rise of the juke box musical across both Broadway and the West End. Audiences want to tap their feet.

Immaculate to look at for sure, no doubt Miss Saigon will provide employment for many and will also channel much tourist wealth into both the London economy and the (deserving) coffers of Mackintosh whose philanthropic support of musical theatre is nothing short of remarkable. It’s not a must see by any means, but it is undoubtedly one hell of a show!

Booking until 2015

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

Park Theatre, London

*****

Written and directed by Jethro Compton
Based on the short story by Dorothy M. Johnson

Paul Albertson

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance was a classic Western, released in 1962, immediately acclaimed as a masterpiece for both its director John Ford and its legendary stars John Wayne and Henry Fonda and since then recognised by the US Library of Congress as being a film of Cultural Significance. The tale revolved around the expansion of the (to be) US territories as the pioneers headed west, encompassing the lawlessness and elementary justice of the time. It also interweaved a well crafted love story and aspects of political compromise, against a backdrop of tumbleweed, saloon bars and much whiskey. Like the fine distillation of a spirit, the ridiculously talented and at 25 young, Jethro Compton (who also directs) has taken the movie’s plot, retaining most key milestones and adding a couple of new ones. The end result is a play that condenses a cinema-scoped canvas into a compelling drama that is set entirely within a saloon bar. It’s an astounding script, tightly written, that provides a thrilling, moving and entirely credible glimpse of quite how Wild the West (and how horrifically racist the South) was.

In the town of Two Trees, where “the sun is hot but the salsa is hotter” a bruised Ransome Forest is brought in badly beaten, having been rescued by rancher Bert Barricune. Hallie Jackson, assisted by her black servant boy Jim Mosten runs the saloon and tends to Forest’s wounds. It emerges that Forest is an educated man from the North East and we see him put down roots in Two Trees, where he teaches the illiterate Jackson and Mosten. The play follows the subtly complex love that develops between the landlady and her Eastern tutor as Barricune’s jealousy smoulders.

There’s a telling line in the play: “bring in education, there follows legislation”. Many folk in the South could not abide the concept of educated black people and Forest’s education of Mosten soon attracts the attention of the racist gang-leader Liberty Valance. To say more would be to spoil, but it is to Compton’s credit that he manages the suspense as well as the morality and love interest with mature aplomb. His writing is at all times exciting, masterful and often gripping.

The performances are faultless throughout. Oliver Lansley is Foster and he nails the portrayal of a caring liberal, committed to a cause yet useless with a gun. Late in the tale, Lansley’s character is elected Governor and Lansley subtly picks out the oleaginous nature shared by all in political office. Paul Albertson’s Barricune could almost suggest the work of a man who has been playing cowboys all his life. His gun-slinging yet complex character is a masterful portrayal that is as weathered and leathered as the coat he wears. (With a nod to fabulous costume work from Jessica Knight). Bringing up the leads, Niamh Walsh is Jackson with another performance of finely observed perfection, convincing as a young woman wise beyond her years. 

Outstanding in support, Lanre Malaolu is Mosten. Capturing the honest enthusiasm of his character and later his blind terror as he recognises the inevitability of his fate, it’s a performance that mixes humour with tragedy and Malalou is unquestionably a young actor who is one to watch. James Marlowe is the bad guy Liberty Valance. Understated chilling menace permeate his scenes, with a combination of vocal work, poise and timing (all skills shared by the rest of the company, to be fair) that create a frighteningly recognisable image of the racist ugliness of America’s South. Sarah Booth’s elegantly detailed saloon bar set, complete with an upstairs landing and swing doors that are gloriously authentic and without a hint of kitsch, stylishly completes the suspension of our disbelief.

Currently this show ranks as my best of 2014. Tightly written and with electrifying performances (that include the coolest of pre-recorded narrations from screen legend Robert Vaughn) it is a work of first-class stagecraft that provides a well observed history lesson into not only how the West was won, but in how the USA was formed. Not to be missed and deserving of a transfer.

Runs to 22nd June 2014

In The Heights

Southwark Playhouse, London

****

Music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda

Book by Quiara Alegria Hudes

Conceived by Lin-Manuel Miranda

Directed by Luke Sheppard

The company of In The Heights

In The Heights makes its UK premiere at the Southwark Playhouse in a production that oozes talent. The show is a fusion of contemporary New York cultures, combining latin infused melodies with rap and blending salsa with breakdance. The music is invigorating and the imagery created by Drew McOnie's choreography and his ridiculously talented company are breathtaking. The story though lacks depth and whilst the show is mostly fabulous to watch, the plotlines are hard to care about.

Set in Washington Heights, a famously latin New York district, the show revolves around the events in one neighbourhood (barrio) over the 4th of July period. The immigrant Latin American pulse of the show at times hints at what Bernstein and Sondheim created with West Side Story and indeed the creative trio behind this production's last collaboration, McOnie, designer takis and musical supervisor Tom Deering, was that Broadway classic, in the 2013 NYMT production (reviewed here).The signature of takis’ deign work is evident throughout, with corrugated steel suggesting the impoverished circumstances of the barrio’s residents. But where Sondheim’s lyrics are timeless, Miranda’s offerings are forgettable.

The cast are gems. David Bedella is Kevin, the father of Nina (Christina Modestou) who has just quit Stanford University because she couldn’t pay her way. With the song Inutil, in which Bedella expresses his character’s sense of inadequacy at having failed to provide for his daughter, there is a glimpse of Bedella’s genius as he captures his character’s tortured soul. Alongside Bedella the entire company shine, especially the feisty and beautifully voiced Josie Benson who is a treat to watch as his wife Camila. Alejandro Postigo who has coached the cast in Spanish and culture has done a fantastic job and the show’s hispanic façade is as convincing as could be wished.

Victoria Hamilton-Barritt is Daniela, the neighbourhood hairdresser and source of wise counsel (and gossip). She steals her scenes with poise, presence and impeccable timing. More of a a scene-setter than stealer, Nathan Amzi’s Piragua Guy is another touch of class. The moustachioed drinks seller (think Super Mario pushing a hot dog cart) deploys his beautiful tones with panache and its just a shame his role is so small. Sam Mackay does a sound job as the all-rapping Usnavi, delivering much of the show’s narrative in a worthy Eminem tribute.

Not for the first time, the star of the production is Drew McOnie’s choreography. Whilst the Southwark Playhouse may offer a large performing space for a fringe venue, there was a compactness to the thrust staging that imbued the sense of cramped tenement accommodation. This is where McOnie is at his best, as he again sculpts his dancers into vivid flowing tableaux of movement and colour. Deering’s musical interpretations are bold for the tight space and his fabulous eight piece band perform brass arrangements with a pulsing gusto, as well as some gorgeous flute work from Hannah Riches. Gareth Owen needs to tinker with his sound design however as lyrics are sometimes drowned, especially in the multi-part harmonies.

The book and lyrics may disappoint, but the singing, dancing and creative talent show the very finest of talent to be found in town, either on or off the West End. There is excellence at work here, go see. 

Runs until 7th June 2014

Scott Alan

Hippodrome, London

*****

Scott Alan accompanies Cynthia Erivo

Straight off the plane from New York, Scott Alan pitched up at London's Hippodrome for a week's late night residency. The composer truly has a remarkable draw as like the Pied Piper he attracts talent from across the capital's music theatre scene to perform with him. Alan last played London in August 2013, packing out the Indigo O2 arena in a memorable evening that set a very high bar. At the Hippodrome, accompanied again by a crop of the West End's young and finest, Alan smashed expectations with a collection of performances that defined excellence.

There was much patter from the man at the piano. Unburdening himself to his audience and very much at home, preferring London as his favourite city to perform him, much of his banter was a disarmingly honest account of his struggles with his sexuality and of being rejected at home and bullied at high school. The family ties are healed now, but Alan's words tell of painful domestic dysfunctionality as well as his continuing and inspirational battle with depression. The self-deprecating humour flowed and where his guests could be affectionately mocked, Alan showed no mercy. But the underlying spirit of the event was a glorious triumph of the human spirit, interspersed with some wonderful songs and sung by some of the best voices in town.

Alan opened the proceedings with Nothing Remains from his latest album. Whilst his guests were to deliver vocal excellence, what Alan brings to the mic is an, at times, uncomfortably raw honesty and his ballad set a reflective tone. Next up though was Danielle Steers hot-footing it from The Bodyguard. Her energy and powerful mezzo delivery was a revelation and as she perfectly held the strongest notes for what seemed an eternity, Steers defined the hallmark of the evening's quality.

Sprinkled throughout the gig were talent-show winners, whose YouTube submissions had been judged by Alan with a lucky few invited to perform through the week. All showed enthusiastic promise, with Kara Bayer in particular having a fidelity that came dangerously close to matching the professional talent sandwiching the amateurs. 

Rob Houchen, fresh from his Marius obligations around the corner in Les Mis gave a beautifully invigorating take on Kiss The Air. Danielle Hope took to the stage with a delightful recollection of how the song Always is a personal inspiration to her, her intro summing up the essence of the night: well crafted numbers that mean so much to so many. Her singing was of course sublime.

Dean John Wilson electrified the crowd singing Home in a performance of soaring bravura, whilst partner Cynthia Erivo gave the sweetest interpretation of And There It Is in a number that defined the intimacy of both the song and the occasion.

A nod to the final two numbers that Alan himself sung. Blessing threw into relief the searing pain he felt at his mother's initial reaction to his coming out. Again, Alan’s disarming honesty at the microphone giving the song a powerful poignancy. The evening’s penultimate number Anything Worth Holding On To proving an emotional Everest for Alan to conquer,

Erivo was to return with an unexpected encore. Alan spontaneously decided he wanted the gig to end on a high and asked the singer to reprise her O2 triumph, High, a brilliant satire sung by and about a weed-stoned teenager, with no notice. Erivo graciously agreed and her hilarious performance proved a masterclass in acting through song, made all the more remarkable given that she hadn’t rehearsed the number for at least 8 months!

With a selection of stellar names guesting through the week, intimate performance does not get better than this. For fans, both of Alan and the modern cabaret genre, this residency is unmissable.

Scott Alan performs until 16th May as part of the London Festival of Cabaret

Lauren Fox

Crazy Coqs, London

***

Lauren Fox

Lauren Fox takes up a one week residency at the Crazy Coqs with her set entitled Love, Lust, Fear & Freedom: The Songs of Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen, a distinctive take on the works of the iconic pair. Not quite a tribute act, though Fox's rambling (if meticulously researched) patter between songs is nothing less than a gushing tribute to both artistes, she takes a broadly chronological journey through the pair’s separate catalogues, pausing to comment on the life milestones pertinent to each singer as well as centering her act around the brief period when Cohen and Mitchell were in a relationship.

Opening with the endearing Michael From Mountains, there is a charming clarity to her manner and it is a measure of the evening that she can comfortably swoop from that number to the wryly cynical Hey, That’s No Way To Say Goodbye from Cohen. Eschweing all props, she simply dons a trilby that subtly suggests Cohen’s style when singing the man’s songs. Other than that, the evening is carried by the simplicity of her voice and John Webber’s seductively well rehearsed 3-piece band.

Some of Fox’s work is finely presented. Singing the Mitchell number Little Green, the song was beautifully arranged and she picked out its poignant delicacy well. A vibrato twang in her early numbers was proved to be nerves and midway through the first half, Fox dried painfully. Her stumble was respected sensitively by the crowded venue and picking herself up professionally. Joni Mitchell’s Chelsea Morning proved to be an invigorating display of talent.

When singing Mitchell’s work, Fox is at times sublime, with her encore number of the classic Both Sides Now, a treat. The laconic drawl of Cohen, such an aural hallmark of his sound, does not translate as easily and some moments, particulary the few brave episodes of a capella singing, seemed to not quite hit the spot. That being said, the arrangement of both vocals and accompaniment for Cohen’s famous Hallelujah was another closing delight.

Acclaimed on the other side of the pond, it may just have been first night nerves that took the gleam off Fox’s mettle and one suspects that as her week plays out she will grow in confidence. If the Cohen / Mitchell era appeals, or if you simply enjoy a relaxed interpretation of some 20th century classics, then wander along to this offering at the Crazy Coqs as part of the London Festival of Cabaret. There is some deliciously mellowed talent on display.

Runs until 17th May 2014

Swan Lake

Swan Theatre, High Wycombe

*****

Composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Choreographed by Matthew Bourne

The corps de ballet in Swan Lake 

Matthew Bourne has just announced that his emotionally charged, audacious Swan Lake has become the longest running ballet, both in the West End and on Broadway. His reinvention of the Bolshoi’s 19th Century iconic beautiful swans famously replaces traditional ‘beautiful’ female corps de ballet with strong, edgy and irascible male creatures. He says ‘…The strength, beauty and enormous wingspan of these creatures suggests to the musculature of a male dancer more readily than a ballerina in her white tutu…’ and indeed his choreography, the swans bouncing with long ‘necks’, perfectly portrays the graceful birds.

Chris Trenfield as the spell-binding Swan / psychopathic alter ego leather clad Stranger and Simon Williams as a Prince whose journey of self-discovery is both painful and joyous both dance and acte with such emotion and power that the standing ovation for the company started immediately they re-appeared after the final chords had sounded: the Prince dead on his huge bed, his mother too late feeling something for her son whilst above we see the Dead Swan, killed by his swans, carrying his dead Prince to eternity. Dramatic stuff indeed and incredibly emotional.

The 14 corps de ballet male Swans themselves are indispensable and remarkable. Strong, fluid, humorous yet menacing and ultimately cruel and lethal. The 4 baby cygnets take their moment also, witty, nervous, clumsy and fun!

Along the way, Bourne’s stylish company bring character, comedy, precision, mime and wit as palace servants, royal officials, asylum nurses and society’s finest; parodying romantic ballet with ornate costumes as butterflies, flowers, woodcutters and insects. Madelaine Brennan is elegance personified as the ice-cold Queen. Carrie Johnson exacted every ounce of comedy as a delightful out-of-her-depth flighty, dim girlfriend/wannabe wag.

The award winning set and design by Lez Brotherston is huge and grandiose, enhanced by stunning costumes (so much attention to detail in gloves, accessories, glitz and makeup) and Rick Fisher’s lighting.

Swan Lake is the world’s most frequently performed ballet but who would have imagined this production’s tremendous achievement when first performed in London 19 years ago? Judging by the first night full house standing ovation at the Wycombe Swan, it looks set to run for decades more!

Runs until 17th May 2014, then tours.