Chris Moreno presents

Annie

At Milton Keynes Theatre

 

This show tells the story of Annie an eleven year old child who had been left on the steps of a New York orphanage ten years ago, with a note from her parents saying they would return for her one day. The orphanage was run by Miss Hannigan (Su Pollard) who appeared to dislike children immensely and subjected Annie and the other orphans to a life of drudgery, whilst she consumed numerous bottles of alcohol. The children were dressed in ragged clothes and were fed what they referred to as “mush.” Despite this Annie remained optimistic that her parents would return to collect her one day. I thought Su Pollard was excellent in this role, whilst her character was unpopular, she was very amusing.

Annie is given some respite from the orphanage when a very wealthy businessman called Oliver Warbucks (David McAlister) decides to invite an orphan to spend Christmas at his mansion. His assistant Grace Farrell (Simone Craddock) visits the orphanage and chooses Annie for this treat, much to the annoyance of Miss Hannigan. Mr Warbucks takes Annie under his wing, being moved by her plight and finding her optimism in her belief that she will be reunited with her parents one day impressive. He decides to help Annie find her parents and enlists the help of some of his contacts, in addition to offering a reward. If Annie’s parents can’t be found he wants to adopt her himself. Miss Hannigan and her nasty brother Rooster (Philip Andrew) have their own devious plot. I won’t reveal any more of the story, you will have to go and see the show if you want to know what happens.

David McAlister was totally believable as the mega rich Oliver Warbucks. Grace Farrell was equally suited to the role of his assistant. As I mentioned before, Su Pollard was hilarious as Miss Hannigan. Ashley Knight deserves special mention; he played the apple seller and also Drake where he stole the show as Mr Warbucks’ butler. His antics were very amusing. I also admired Audrey Leybourne’s two very different roles as the ‘Hour of Smiles’ Producer and Mrs Pugh at Oliver Warbucks’ mansion. Special mention should be given to all the children who took part and performed really well.

The scenery was magnificent, very lavish and the numerous scene changes were carried out effectively and discreetly. I particularly liked the staircase at Oliver Warbucks’ mansion. There was a variety of scenery used from the shabby orphanage to the opulence of The White House or Oliver Warbucks’ mansion. The costumes were also appropriate ranging from the orphans’ rags, the servants uniforms to the evening dresses.

I should also mention the musical numbers that are performed throughout the show, whilst I can’t list them all, well known songs such as ‘It’s the Hard Knock Life’ and ‘Tomorrow’ were well received.

This show has a real feel good factor and as there were numerous children in the audience it clearly has appeal as family entertainment. If this is your type of show then you should not miss this production.

Annie plays Milton Keynes Theatre from Tuesday 31^st August to Saturday 4^th September 2010. Milton Keynes Theatre Box Office 0844 871 7652 (bkg fee).

The tour then continues playing the Hexagon Theatre Reading from Monday 6^th September to Saturday 11^th September 2010.

www.miltonkeynestheatre.com  www.theatre4u.co.uk/annie

Reviewed by Sue Marks at Milton Keynes Theatre on Tuesday 31^st August 2010.

 

 

 

 

 

FORMER  X-Factor semi-finalist and West End leading lady Niki Evans is preparing to don the care-worn smile and cross-over pinny to play the iconic role of Mrs Johnstone in the smash-hit musical Blood Brothers at Darlington Civic Theatre. STEVE BURBRIDGE discovers why so many successful singers and recording artists are only too willing to trade a place at the top of the charts for a life on ‘the never-never’.

AT the beginning of the play, she’s the twenty-something Liverpudlian single mother ‘with seven hungry mouths to feed and one more nearly due,’ but, by the final curtain, she ends up a down-trodden, distraught grandmother who is struggling to comprehend the most tragic of situations.

The pivotal character of Mrs Johnstone in Willy Russell’s musical, Blood Brothers, is anything but a glamorous part, so what is it about the role that attracts pop princesses and singing superstars by the dozen?

Well, the answer is, initially it didn’t.

When Willy Russell approached folk singer Barbara Dickson to play Mrs Johnstone, in 1982, she repeatedly turned him down.

‘I was so riddled with self doubt about whether I could actually do it, never having acted in my life,’ she said. ‘It worried me that I would not be up to doing it.’

After much persuasion and reassurance, she finally accepted his offer and the show opened at Liverpool Playhouse for a three month run in January 1983.

It was an instant success and transferred to the Lyric Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue, in April of the same year, where it won an Olivier Award for Best New Musical and Barbara Dickson was named Best Actress in a Musical by The Society of West End Theatres.

Speaking of the role she was so instrumental in creating, Barbara said: ‘Mrs Johnstone is a role which is very dear to my heart and a hard act to follow. I couldn’t accept a role which was less than that and such parts are thin on the ground.’

The impact of the character upon Barbara Dickson was so profound that she has since reprised the role three times – once in the West End, to coincide with its tenth anniversary celebrations, and twice in Liverpool.

After two extensive national tours, Blood Brothers returned to the West End in July 1988. It played to packed houses at the Albery Theatre, where it starred Kiki Dee. Best remembered for ‘Don’t Go Breaking My Heart’, her 1976 hit duet with Elton John, Blood Brothers proved to be a significant event in her career, too.

‘It’s such a strong piece,’ she said. ‘You just have to graft and hope you’re doing a good performance.’

The musical ran at the Albery until the end of 1991 after which it moved to the larger Phoenix Theatre in Charing Cross Road, where it remains to this day.

Having enjoyed such critical and commercial success in the West End, it was only a matter of time before the show transferred to Broadway and it opened at the Music Box Theatre, West 45^th Street, in April 1993 and ran for two years.

The late Stephanie Lawrence, who had starred in the West End productions of Evita, Marilyn!, Starlight Express and Blood Brothers was rewarded with a Tony nomination for Best Actress in a Musical and won the Theater World Award for Outstanding Broadway Debut by an Actress for her portrayal of Mrs Johnstone, before returning to continue the role in London.

In an interview given in 1995, five years before her untimely death, she said: ‘I find the role emotionally exhausting. Mrs Johnstone is a character who has had so many knocks that there is not much left you can sling at her. She’s a fighter and a winner.’

Producer Bill Kenwright persuaded singing sensation Petula Clark to take over the role on Broadway, despite the fact that she experienced the same initial misgivings as Barbara Dickson had.

‘I thought it was total madness,’ she said. ‘I did a lot of soul searching before I finally said yes.’

Once settled in the role, and after garnering great acclaim from the New York critics, Petula admitted that she’d made the right decision.

‘The music fits me like a glove, it’s my kind of music. That was the big selling-point, really, for me.’

Clark led the production during a hugely successful American tour and was succeeded on Broadway by Carole King, the Grammy award-winning singer-songwriter responsible for the 1971 hit single, ‘It’s Too Late.’  Having been invited to watch the show with the proposition of performing the role of Mrs Johnstone, Carole was also unsure about taking on the part. However she’d made up her mind by the interval.

‘After the first act, I said: ‘I’m in.’ I love the show,’ she enthused. ‘The melodies are very comfortable for me to sing because they’re very like the ones I would write.’

For Australian-born Helen Reddy it was the strength of Mrs Johnstone’s character that appealed more than anything else. Echoing the sentiments of her 1972 feminist anthem, ‘I Am Woman’, she said: ‘If I didn’t think that Mrs Johnstone was a strong and invincible woman, I wouldn’t have been interested in playing her.’

However, Helen certainly was interested and went on to play the part on Broadway, in the West End, and also in Liverpool between 1995 and 1997.

At the same time, the UK’s 1971 Eurovision representative, Clodagh Rodgers, who came fourth with her hit song, ‘Jack In A Box’, joined the West End cast before touring the role until 1998.

Although some of the women who are chosen to play Mrs Johnstone agonise over whether they can rise to the challenge of performing such a demanding and emotionally-charged role, others instinctively know it will suit them down to the ground.

Former New Seekers singer, Lyn Paul said: ‘I saw the show and said to my husband then that it was a part I wanted to play.’

She wrote to theatre impresario Bill Kenwright to express her interest and was invited to meet him.

‘He sent me a letter back saying fine, come and see me and I was in the show the following week,’ she recalled. ‘Even though I hadn’t done musicals before, he took the gamble of taking me on.’

Lyn’s association with the role has spanned thirteen years from 1997, during which time she has starred in both West End and touring productions. In December 2008, she was voted ‘The Undisputed Mrs Johnstone of All Time’ by fans of the show on the Blood Brothers Online website.

In October 2009, former Spice Girl Melanie Chisholm took over the role from X-Factor semi-finalist Niki Evans in the West End.  Despite being daunted by the prospect of playing such an iconic role, her six month run earned her great critical acclaim and a nomination for Best Actress in a Musical at the Olivier Awards earlier this year.

‘Playing Mrs Johnstone is quite a weight to have on your shoulders, but I was in such good hands and it really paid off,’ she said.

Perhaps one name is inextricably linked with Mrs Johnstone more than any other – Nolan. During the last thirteen years four of the sisters, Bernie, Linda, Denise and Maureen, have portrayed her, earning them a place in the Guinness Book of Records as the most siblings to have played the same role in the same show at different times.

‘It’s such a brilliant piece and a great part,’ said Bernie. ‘It’s a gift, really, and I thoroughly enjoyed playing her.’

Linda agreed: ‘I was thrilled to be asked and I put everything into it. There’s been so many fabulous Mrs Johnstone’s and I wanted to be as good as them and put my own stamp on the part.’

Prior to taking on the role in 2005, Maureen had seen three of her sisters play Mrs Johnstone.

‘Before I was in it I had seen it 17 times!’ she admitted. ‘I was so enthralled and I thought: ‘If I ever do it I will never short-change anybody.’ I think for a woman of my age it’s the best role, really. It’s got everything – comedy, tragedy and music.’

When, in September 2008, Linda Nolan had to withdraw from the Blood Brothers tour due to illness, Marti Webb took over after a 24-hour decision. Webb was already an accomplished musical theatre actress and had achieved chart success with three top five singles in the 1980s.

‘It was literally decided in one day,’ she said. ‘I was like a rabbit in the headlights because I had to learn the songs and the script in twenty-four hours, but Mrs Johnstone is such an important role and I had a ball playing her.’

Now, though, Niki Evans is reprising the role once more and she is as enthusiastic about playing the part as she was when she first performed in the West End in 2008.

‘It’s just an unbelievable part,’ she explained. ‘I still have to pinch myself every night when I’m on stage to remind myself that I’m really there.’

Such is the dramatic power and cultural impact of Blood Brothers that, already the next generation of Mrs Johnstone’s are waiting in the wings.

Former Steps singer Faye Tozer is one of many who have publicly expressed an ambition to take on the role.

‘I’ve always wanted to play Mrs Johnstone,’ she said. ‘I’m probably still a little bit young for it, but I’d love to do it.’

And who’s to say that some time in the not too distant future she won’t be up there giving it her all?

Blood Brothers is at Darlington Civic Theatre from September 20 to September 25. Tickets cost from £18.00 to £31.00 (concessions available). To book, call 01325 486 555 or log on to www.darlingtonarts.co.uk 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Matt Devitt’s production of Ladies Down Under revisits Amanda Whittington’s characters from Ladies Day, a play about four Northern lasses from a fish packing factory in Hull who win half a million pounds on an accumulator at Ascot.  The ladies are brought back together again as they embark on a soul searching trip to Australia with their winnings. The characters of Pearl, Jan, Linda and Shelley are easily bought into, as long as you buy the full set.  Together they are a dynamic, but as individual characters they would possibly fade.  The play relies heavily on stereotypes, particularly in its male characters, which gives it its humour.  Simon Jessop and Oliver Seymour-Marsh give a humorous presentation as camp flight attendants and go on to play an array of recognisable characters. Seymour-Marsh plays an enthusiastic surfer and a spiritual bushman traveller.  Jessop is an ageing, stoned British traveller and Joe, the boyfriend of Jan from the factory who is disillusioned with his trip of a lifetime to Australia which he began the year before.  In a colourful climax, two fantastically gregarious drag queens dominate the stage.  Jessop, slightly unsure on his heels performs beautifully executed poses as Koala Bare and Seymour-Marsh is just as at home in his thigh high boots performing gay anthems as Bondi Bitch as he is in his bush man boots giving lessons in life to all.

 Amanda Whittington has concentrated on taking the characters to a new place in this sequel. Thrown together in unfamiliar surroundings their personalities clash and truths are revealed, the ladies are forced to look deeper at themselves and into their lives back home.  One by one they are confronted with their faults and fears and each one follows an arc of discovery. Diana Croft sustains the negativity of the babbling, unconfident Jan, who complains constantly about her bowel problems and her lack of faith in anything, including her relationship with Joe.  Helen Watson is warm and compelling in her role as Pearl who, hiding a secret, looks for adventure and new experiences however small. Lucy Thackeray brings freshness to the character of Linda, a timid do-gooder who is happier giving her money to others rather than spending it on herself. Sarah Scowen begins slightly caricature as Shelley, overdressed in garish designer wear, desperate for fame and recognition, but softens as she opens up about her past, even if it is to a complete stranger in the bush.  The plot is laden with coincidences and flukes, but ultimately this is the play’s charm, making it easy to watch and accessible. All that is asked of the audience is to suspend their disbelief, sit back, relax and enjoy.

Matt Devitt  has chosen a minimalistic set designed by Claire Lyth, which enhances the emphasis of character rather than place. Quick scene changes take place smoothly in darkness with pictures of Surfers Paradise and Uluru projected onto the back wall to create a sense of location and an effective use of lighting creates atmosphere.   

Each character undergoes a transformation.  The overriding question of, can money make you happy, looms over the whole play but the conclusion that it gives is slightly confused.   It certainly seems to be an aiding factor in all their cases but I had the feeling that that wasn’t the aim.  The characters had to go on a trip which would give them the space to assess their lives and the outback was a perfect setting, but these characters would never have done this without their winnings. Ultimately this was a fun production with the underlying significance being friendship and humanity, which takes you from laughter to tears and back again... and again.

CAST

Jan Diana Croft
Joe Simon Jessop
Shelley Sarah Scowen
Tom Oliver Seymour-Marsh
Linda  Lucy Thackeray
Pearl Helen Watson

Director Matt Devitt
Designer Claire Lyth

 

DATES, TIMES AND PRICES
Fri 27 Aug | 8pm | Preview £14
Sat 28 Aug | 8pm | Preview £20 | £16.50 conc
Tue 31 Aug | 7.30pm | £20 | £16.50 conc
Mon - Thurs Perfs | 8pm | £20 | £16.50 conc
(7.30pm on Tue 31 Aug)
(no performance on Mon 30 Aug)
Fri - Sat Perfs | 8pm | £23
Matinees | Sat 4 Sep | Thurs 9 Sep | 2.30pm £14

Bill Kenwright presents Clifford Odets’

The Country Girl

At Milton Keynes Theatre

 

I was eager to see this play as I like Martin Shaw and Jenny Seagrove, you will, therefore, understand my shock and disappointment when it was announced just before the start of the performance that Martin Shaw was indisposed and his role would be taken by the understudy Peter Harding.  As Martin Shaw and Jenny Seagrove have a chemistry formed over a number of years where previous roles have seen them appearing together, it was obvious that this element could not be incorporated into this performance.

The play centres on Frank Elgin, an alcoholic actor who is offered the opportunity of a comeback to star in a new Broadway play by director Bernie Dodd, played by Mark Letheren. Bernie remembers how good an actor Frank was before his drinking took hold and is convinced Frank can sober up and learn his lines in the few weeks before the show opens. Bernie is sure that Frank’s wife Georgie, (Jenny Seagrove) is to blame for Frank’s demise which results in a stormy relationship between them. Georgie is, in fact, very supportive of her husband Frank, she convinced him to accept the role when he doubted his ability to sort himself out.

In the first half of the play Georgie appears to be the downtrodden wife of an alcoholic and has the demeanour of someone older. Whilst the American accent is necessary for the play I thought it made it difficult to understand some of the dialogue. As Frank is attempting to remember his lines he is very emotional and full of self doubt. He turns to alcohol at times to ease his nerves. Georgie keeps a watchful eye in an attempt to keep him sober so he can master the role.

I found the first half of this play somewhat tedious and slow, it is a play about actors within a play with actors playing other actors. The stage appeared quite cluttered with scenery at times and scenery was moved around in a way that was a little confusing due to the play within a play element.

In the second half the pace seemed to pick up a little and Georgie appeared stronger and feisty.  I think Jenny Seagrove is excellent in roles which portray strong, independent women. Bernie realises that Jenny has been supportive to Frank and there is an attraction between them, which creates a different tension in their relationship.

Peter Harding did a reasonable job of playing Frank Elgin, but he isn’t Martin Shaw and I found myself wondering at times how Martin would have played it. As I said before the chemistry there would have been was lacking. This no doubt affected Jenny Seagrove’s performance as she works so well with Martin Shaw.  Mark Letheren was excellent as Bernie Dodd, giving a very vibrant performance. I must admit I didn’t really engage with the character of Frank Elgin, I didn’t care if he succeeded or not.

I didn’t enjoy this play as much as I had anticipated, but obviously some of this was due to Martin Shaw’s absence. I hope he will soon return to the show.

The Country Girl plays Milton Keynes Theatre from Monday 23^rd August to Saturday 28^th August 2010. Milton Keynes Theatre Box Office 0844 871 7652 (bkg fee).

The tour then continues playing Theatre Royal Nottingham from 31^st August to 4^th September 2010.

www.miltonkeynestheatre.com www.kenwright.com

Reviewed by Sue Marks at Milton Keynes Theatre on Monday 23^rd August 2010.

 

  

 

 

The Will is billled as a ' 2-man comedy play with a touch of music.' This is an understatement as this new piece by David Doyle  is an hour choc full of cabaret and comedy, farce and  and pop culture pastiche.

Father Howard (Kevin Potton) and Doctor Donald (David Doyle) meet up to read  at midnight the will of an old colleague.

We are taken on a ride through each characters neuroses, from espionage secrets in Serbia to disillusionment with their present careers, all sprinkled with song and dance routines.

  The Will has laugh out loud moments, Doyle and Potton have good voices and nice comic timing. With first night nerves overcome some some gags could do with speeding up to reduce their repetitiveness. The nods to popular sayings and past comedy greats are a nice touch.

Doyle's text is certainly linguistically challenging for the two actors and they pull it off with aplomb.


The Camden fringe
Etcetera Theatre
August 21 to 23 1030pm

We both wanted men but we got institutions.

 

Robert David MacDonald’s play describes a fictional meeting of Eva Braun and Clara Petaccci, the mistresses of Hitler and Mussolini.  During the course of the play the two women assume a range of male roles such as their dictator lovers, a fanatical Hitler Youth, and misogynists. As themselves they demonstrate how the continuance of an oppressive system is dependent upon the compliance of its victims.

 

The venue is an imposing eighteenth-century mansion at 32 Portland Place. Set in the diplomatic heart of central London, it provides the ideal backdrop for this surreal and disturbing production. Most of the action takes place in the living room but there are a few scenes on the stairs and in the hallway. The chorus consisting of three talented singers sees to it that every member of the audience has a good view of the actors.

 

When we follow the Soldier, dressed in a fascist uniform, into the living room we find Eva Braun and Clara Petacci in their underwear embracing and exchanging hot kisses. Dresses and underwear is draped over lamps and statues. They are drinking champagne and having a good time. Very soon their attention is directed towards the young man. Singing the all-time favourite Nazi hit „Die Fahne hoch“ they begin undressing the man, putting a dress on him while Braun and Petacci are now wearing trousers. The soldier has changed into the woman, the victim, while the mistresses act as chauvinist males at their worst. After assuming a variety of male roles Braun and Petacci lament their fate as mistresses of institutions. Although they have certain privileges they are never allowed to take their rightful place next to their men. Instead they are forced to live rather restricted lives. Like gangsters their dictator-lovers see women either as mothers or whores, and whores need to be kept tugged away, out of sight.  

 

The production is an unsentimental examination of the cold eroticism of power, the oppression of the weak by their darker selves and the sordid politcs of oppression. The charismatic Laura Pradelska gives a stunning performance as Eva Braun, Elisa Terren is a captivating Clara Petacci and Martin Behrman is impressive and touching as the Soldier.

 

aya theatre company was formed by a collective of emerging theatre artists. Their next project is Burmese Days, adapted from George Orwell’s first novel.  

   

Venue: 32 Portland Place W1B 1QE

Weds-Sat only, 7.30pm (Doors 6.45pm)until 4th September 2010  

 

THIS IS A AN INVITE-ONLY FREE PERFORMANCE

Please go to the following webpage to reserve a ticket:

http://www.ayatheatre.com/iWeb/aya/SummitConference.html

 

EDINBURGH FRESTIVAL FRINGE – TILL 29 AUGUST 2010

THE SEAGULL by Anton Chekhov in a NEW adaptation by top playwright Jo Clifford

This open air production of the Russian genius's great work has been especially adapted by the celebrated Scottish playwright Jo Clifford. It is as though this masterpiece was written for Alba at Duddingston overlooking the loch. Magical drama

Jo Clifford says:

“I’ve wanted to work with Theatre Alba for years, ever since I started writing plays. At that time I saw their production of “The Shepherd Beguiled” which moved and impressed me profoundly.

That play and that production had a great influence on my work, and it is a real joy for me now all those years later that we finally have the chance to work together.

The Seagull is the perfect project for us to work on. The stunningly beautiful setting of Duddingston loch is absolutely right for the play, as is the whole playing style of the Company in all its emotional truth and power.

Charles Nowolskielski originally asked me to shorten the play. But as I started working on it the play worked its magic on me and before I knew it I found myself re-living the characters’ lives. And then hearing their words. Which I felt compelled to write down.

So I ended up rewriting the play and producing a completely new version of it. It is such a pleasure, and such a delight for me to inhabit Chekhov’s dramatic world. I hope it is the same for the audience too.”

Duddingston  Kirk Manse Gardens (Venue 121) , Old Church Lane, Edinburgh EH15 till 29 August (not 23,24).  7.30 pm.

PRESS RELEASE

King’s Theatre, Glasgow

DIRECT FROM THE EDINBURGH FESTIVAL FRINGE

BUSTING OUT!

A Musical Comedy Touring To

King’s Theatre Glasgow, Wed 1^st Sept

The biggest Australian show since Priscilla, Busting Out! is a raucously entertaining, fun, funny, thoroughly theatrical, empowering and affirmative celebration of the female body.  It’s created by Emma Powell and performed by Emma and Bev Killick - two of Australia's most sensational performers.  Emma's career has been a glittering one in Musical Theatre (she played Rosie in the Australasian Tour of Mamma Mia) and Bev is one of Australia's most celebrated female stand-ups.

 

The show has been a fêted hit in Australia and New Zealand, famed for its dynamic inclusivity it has now played to over 250,000 people. The audience play a vital role in the proceedings (by appearing on a large on-stage screen and often actually on stage) which threatens, on occasions, to turn the entire theatre into an utterly disorderly house!  Emma and Bev’s up-front and out-there breast-based contortions are intercut with rousing song and dance sequences, hilarious sketches, a shadow play and brilliant stand-up comedy.

Yes, it's a wild night out but as Australian commentators have pointed out Busting Out!  is “an affirming lesson in body love and esteem without the soapbox” (The West Australian) and  it “makes women feel good about themselves and their bodies” (Sunday Mail Adelaide)

So, as Busting Out! re-asserts women’s ownership of their own breasts in their own terms …they satirise the female form as they celebrate it, they parody conventional stereotypes, and they “repeatedly ambush the audience with their audacity” (The Manly Daily).

If that sounds far too heavy by half, listen to a word of advice from one reviewer in Canberra.  He said, “if all you want is a laugh, you’ll be compensated many times over”.   So it only remains to dust off the puns.   Ladies and gentlemen, prepare to give all your support to an outstanding pair of fully-rounded performers with ample talents.  They’re stars and they’re big ones.  (And Emma and Bev aren’t so bad either).

PLEASE NOTE THIS SHOW IS RECOMMENDED 14+

Listings Info:

BUSTING OUT
Wed 1^st Sept @ 7.30pm
Tickets: £16
Box Office 08448 717 648 (Bkg fee)
www.ambassadortickets.com/glasgow (bkg fee)

The cheeky movie based on real life events takes a second national tour as a play with an A-list cast, a light-hearted yet poignant script and some brilliant ‘laugh out loud’ one-liners.

 

Life can be stranger than fiction, it is said.  Who could imagine, for example, that a group of women (who are not classic beauties by any means) could produce a nude calendar which might sell in its thousands to raise millions for a local hospital?  And wouldn’t it be even stranger if the connection between these pioneering women was the Women’s Institute – famed more for sponge cake sales and jam making than soft porn?  Life can be funny that way, and even funnier in the hands of scriptwriters Juliette Towhidi and Tim Firth, who’s clearly defined quirky characters and ‘knock em dead’ one-liners had the audience in stitches.

 

Staging appeared to be a simple reconstruction of a church hall complete with badminton court but was revealed to be deceptively complex as a hydraulic mechanism smoothly transferred the action to a sunny hillside – no mean feat!  Roger Haines’s direction was sympathetic to the underlying tragedy which contrasted delightfully with the natural comedy that the characters engaged to deal with the situation.  The expertly choreographed photography sequence gained maximum laughs while preserving the ladies’ modesty but proved to be even racier that the 2008 tour of the play.  Priceless!

 

So what of that A-list cast?  They turned in a 1^st class performance!  There was a great chemistry between the characters exuding an air of long term friendship.  The narrative naturally belonged to Julia Hills (as grieving widow, Annie) and Elaine C Smith (as her unwittingly self-centred friend, Chris) and both were convincing and comical as appropriate, proving breadth of character as both played different roles in the 2008 tour.  But the wider cast added real value, too, as they lightened the tone with infectious Northern humour.  Jennifer Ellison (Celia) raised some laughs as her character certainly fancied herself as a tasteful nude.  The witty girl-talk was shared by Denise Black and Jean Boht with Ruth Madoc as prudish Marie being the butt of many jokes.  This time around it was Rachel Lumberg as Ruth who stole the show for me with her clear character development and brilliantly timed comedic delivery.

 

 

LISTINGS:

King’s Theatre, Glasgow

Mon 16 – Sat 28 August

Mon – Sat eves 7.30pm

Thu & Sat mats 2.30pm

Tickets: £11.50 - £27.50

Box Office: 0844 871 7647 (bkg fee)

www.ambassadortickets/glasgow (bkg fee)

The latest production of Into The Woods at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, offers an enchanting night of magical, musical story telling that is not to be missed.

Written in 1987 by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, this complex musical uses classic fairytales such as Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood and Jack and the Beanstalk, to tell a morality tale of self-discovery. From the first chords the audience are led on an emotional journey as the characters realise a collective responsibility for the results of their decisions, wishes, greed and desires. In the first half everyone's wish comes true, and in second act they have to deal with the consequences. The central theme deals with the loss of innocence, and the narrative is given a highly effective new dimension by being told by a lonely child who has run away into the woods, and uses his imagination to create a fantasy world.

The stage is naturally surrounded by the park’s trees, and Soutra Gilmour’s  impressive climbing frame set that peaks with a nest for Rapunzel’s tower, contributes to the visual spell. This is further invoked when darkness falls and Jon Clark’s lighting design adds to the treat.

Timothy Sheader’s direction is endlessly creative, and perfectly complimented by Liam Steel’s movement work. Beverly Rudd is delightfully comic as Red Riding Hood, and Michael Xavier and Simon Thomas work in perfect synchronicity as the princes. Jenna Russell shows great emotional range as the Baker’s wife, and Alice Fearn is memorable as Rapunzel. 

Into The Woods is one of Sondheim’s masterpieces, and this production has managed to create a more than satisfying revival. It is a wonderful 80^th birthday gift for the composer, and is a superb finale to the season at Regent’s Open Air theatre.

OLIVER VALENTINE  

                         

Into The Woods runs until 11^th September   www.openairtheatre.com