UK Theatre Network

David Essex In

All The Fun Of The Fair

At Milton Keynes Theatre

David Essex not only stars in this show, he also wrote the music and lyrics. The writer Jon Conway took as his starting point the songs of David Essex, paring down 80 or so tracks to ones that fit together with a supporting storyline, to create a coherent whole. 

Although it is not necessary, your enjoyment of this musical will be enhanced if you are already familiar with David’s songs. The show is based around a travelling funfair, which has been a recurring theme in this star’s career, notably in the film That’ll be the Day.  

Whilst David Essex is the star of the show in his role as Levi the owner of the fair he is ably supported by Rob Compton who plays his son Jack and sings many of the songs that were originally hits for David. Mention must also be made of Tim Newman who takes the difficult role of Jonny, which changes between the damaged runaway orphan and the confident motorcycle hero. The female lead is taken by Louise English who plays the Romany fortune teller Rosa, she is however, challenged by Tanya Robb in the role of Alice, Jack’s love interest. The three other major characters are well played by Susan Hallam-Wright as Rosa’s daughter Mary, David Burrows who is Alice’s father and Barry Bloxham as the villainous character Druid.

The storyline deals with several issues including parents’ relationships with their teenagers, teenage love, unrequited love, frictions caused by different lifestyles and parental disapproval of their teenagers’ choice of lover. There is also the dilemma of how to improve the financial status of the fair with younger members pressing for a need to move on and reinstate a dangerous motorbike main event as a crowd puller. Levi is resisting this as his wife was killed participating in a similar event. There are some fight scenes that suggest more violence than actually occurs onstage. I thought this worked quite well as some of the characters were not people to be crossed, but the level of violence they were capable of would have been inappropriate in this performance.

The scenery was excellent and very realistic of a funfair. Stalls were brought on and off; there was a rifle range; brightly coloured bags of sweets and candyfloss and numerous cuddly toys. At times dodgem cars were brought onstage and driven round and in another scene carousel horses were lowered which helped to create the atmosphere of a real fairground.  Lighting and special effects were also used to good effect and the audience were showered with streamers. The costumes were relevant to the period and appropriate for the various characters.

There were numerous songs throughout the show including; A Winter’s Tale, All The Fun Of The Fair, Hold Me Close, Rock On   and many more. These were well performed by various members of the cast. 

This is a very enjoyable show and if you are a fan of David Essex it is not to be missed. It was well received by the audience and it was clear from the enthusiasm of the audience that there were plenty of David Essex fans there.

All The Fun Of The Fair plays Milton Keynes Theatre until Saturday 11^th February 2012. Milton Keynes Theatre Box Office 0844 871 7852 (bkg fee).

The tour continues playing Darlington Civic Centre from Tuesday 14^th to Saturday 18^th February 2012.

www.atgtickets.com/miltonkeynes  www.allthefunofthefairmusical.com

Reviewed by Sue Marks at Milton Keynes Theatre on Tuesday 7^th February 2012.  

This is essential family entertainment this year and, for me, the best pantomime ever put on in MK theatre!
A fast paced show with a very strong cast, tons of music, great singing – very current tunes so easy to sing along to, very high energy dancing, lots of audience participation – well for some people!! At least try to look like you are enjoying yourself (sigh!). Gareth Gates hit the big time in 2002 in Pop Idol but more recently has concentrated on developing his theatre career with stints in Joseph and his Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat and a critically acclaimed performance in Les Miserables. He is BRILLIANT, very sweet and funny, and with Nicola Brazil as the Princess the two of them are really charming. They both have gorgeous voices and their duets were believeable and romantic. 
There are tons of laughs and at times total hilarity - as always in panto not all of them planned! It’s Paul Burling’s role, as Wishee Washee to provide the majority of the laughs and he does not disappoint. This Britain’s Got Talent finalist is in his element, born to be on stage and a fantastic entertainer; one set of impressions will have you both laughing and astounded at the speed of them. He is perfect.
Widow Twanky (John Barr), is excellent, very sharp and quick, full of double entendres, but not in an overly smutty way; this is a big improvement on recent years when the humour has stepped over the line into being unsuitable for younger audiences. This year it was fabulous to see that this is truly family entertainment.
Major Pong (Chris Nelson) was suitably daft and silly. Abanazer (Adam Pearce) is incredibly strong, with great stage presence, a larger than life character with a belter of a voice; suitably bad and scared the living daylights out of a particular 4 year old!

The rest of the cast from adult to child and even elephant gave it their all! This is SUPERB cast from start to finish.
In addition to the cast, there is lots of glamour – and not just from Widow Twanky’s costumes! The genie of the ring and the genie of the lamp (Camilla Dallerup) were a treat for the men! There are truly gorgeous backdrops and scenery, all garishly coloured and smothered with glittering, sparkling sequins. There is a definite nod to Strictly here.
The added attraction at MK is the guest genies that will appear over the run - Russell Grant (20 – 24 Dec) and Anita Dobson (26 – 31 Dec) from this current season of Strictly. Camilla Dallerup will perform at all remaining performances except Fri 6, Sat 7 & Sat 14 Jan.
A real first class show, perfect family entertainment. But please, if you go, try and show some enthusiasm. It’s hard work being on stage so give something back and show some appreciation!

Run continues until 15 Jan 2012
Milton Keynes Theatre Box Office, Call 0844

8717652 (bkg fee) or visit www.atgtickets/miltonkeynes (bkg fee)  

Propeller present

Henry V

By William Shakespeare

At Milton Keynes Theatre

This Shakespearean company is, like Shakespeare’s original company, all male. Propeller combines an authentic rendition of the text with a modern approach that sets it apart from the run of the mill, period piece.

On entering the theatre, the set is visible to the audience and comprises a metal scaffold which surrounds the stage. There is a flagpole at the rear displaying the flag of St George. On the stage there are some munitions boxes. Suddenly the actors appear  wearing camouflage fatigues and black balaclavas,  they are singing a Pogues song, A Pair of Brown Eyes and having entered via one of the audience entrances, walk past the audience as they make their way to the stage.

This play, written by Shakespeare in 1599, focuses on events prior to and after the battle of Agincourt (1415) during the Hundred Years’ War. Henry is urged to go to war with France by the Archbishop of Canterbury (Gunnar Cauthery) and the Bishop of Ely (Robert Hands). King Henry V is played by Dugald Bruce-Lockhart, who is excellent in the role. The French Ambassador (Nicholas Asbury) presents the King with the Dauphin’s gift of a bin full of tennis balls and a mocking message. Henry uses this as a reason to invade France, although he had already decided to do so.  The Chorus encourages the audience to use their imaginations to overcome the limitations of the stage to visualise the crossing of the channel and the battlefields of France.

Henry discovers a plot to assassinate him at Southampton involving the Earl of Cambridge (Richard Dempsey) Lord Scroop (Karl Davies) and Sir Thomas Grey (Nicholas Asbury). Henry is ruthless in his treatment of the plotters.

Before the battle of Agincourt victory appears uncertain and the King, in disguise wanders around the English camp to comfort the soldiers and to glean what they truly think of him.

Following his victory at Agincourt Henry tries to woo the French princess Katherine, brilliantly played by Karl Davies. This is quite amusing as Henry doesn’t speak French and Katherine doesn’t speak English. Chris Myles plays Alice, Katherine’s gentlewoman who attempts to teach her English whilst she is taking a bath. I think it was made more hilarious by the fact that Chris Myles was playing two roles simultaneously, Henry’s uncle, the Duke of Exeter and Alice. He had a moustache and wore a soldier’s uniform top, with a navy pleated skirt.

Most of the cast took more than one role and performed well, with some of them playing various instruments. They performed the Clash’s London’s Calling during the performance. In the interval some of the cast came out into the foyer and performed some songs including Sloop John B and Wild Rover. They collected donations for Lifeworks, a charity that helps children with special needs.

Credit must be given to the director, Edward Hall, Ben Ormerod for the lighting and David Gregory for the sound.

This is a very enjoyable, energetic production that is well worth seeing.

Henry V plays Milton Keynes Theatre until Saturday 3^rd December 2011. Milton Keynes Theatre Box Office 0844 871 7852 (bkg fee).

The tour continues playing Festival Temporada Alta, Girona, Spain from 6^th to 8^th December 2011.

www.atgtickets.com/miltonkeynes http://uktheatre.tv www.propeller.org.uk

Reviewed by Sue Marks at Milton Keynes Theatre on Tuesday 29^th November 2011.

Bill Kenwright presents Tommy Steele in

Scrooge

At Milton Keynes Theatre

This is a lavish production of Leslie Bricusse’s adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Christmas Carol. There is a large cast who all perform really well making this a most enjoyable show. It is directed by Bob Tomson and features illusions by Paul Kieve, who was involved in one of the Harry Potter films.

Tommy Steele is excellent in the role of Scrooge and it is hard to believe he is nearly 75 years old, his vocals were strong and his energy was amazing. He portrayed the miserly, “Bah Humbug” Scrooge and later, the generous Christmas loving Scrooge equally well.

Edward Handoll was a convincing Bob Cratchit. Barry Howard was the ghost of Jacob Marley, who was Scrooge’s business partner before his death. Sarah Earnshaw was the ghost of Christmas past who took Scrooge to revisit his youth. James Head took the role of the ghost of Christmas present and was quite an imposing figure with a striking costume and headdress. Nick Blair was the ghost of Christmas yet to come, who was very tall, silent and hidden by black robes and was the scariest one of all.

Numerous songs are performed throughout including the well known Thank You Very Much. There is an accomplished nine piece orchestra conducted by Stuart Pedlar who is also the musical director.

The scenery is very impressive with quite a lot of changes which are well executed. There are the tall black Dickensian houses and streets and the inside of Scrooge’s house with his four poster bed, not that he gets much sleep with all these ghosts turning up during the night! Lighting is used to good effect and there are some pyrotechnics.

This is the familiar story of Scrooge the miser who is a hard taskmaster to his employee, Bob Cratchit and is lacking in human kindness. He doesn’t “do” Christmas, calling it “Humbug” and he grudgingly allows some of the townsfolk who have borrowed money from him to defer payment to the following week. It would seem unlikely that anyone would want to spend Christmas with such a man, but every year he is invited to spend the day with his nephew, although he has never taken up the offer. Then, on Christmas Eve 7 years to the day when his business partner Jacob Marley died, Scrooge is visited by his ghost, who warns him to change his mean spirited ways or he will suffer in the after life. Marley also tells of other ghosts of Christmas past, present and future who will appear during the night to reinforce this message.

Following his encounters with these ghosts Scrooge changes and on Christmas morning he shocks the townsfolk by his generosity and pro Christmas spirit. He then takes up his nephew’s invitation to spend the day with him and joins in the fun.

This show has a real feel good factor and it was well received by the audience, it really is a must see.

Scrooge plays Milton Keynes Theatre until Saturday 26^th November 2011. Milton Keynes Theatre Box Office 0844 871 7852 (bkg fee).

The tour continues playing Glasgow Royal Theatre from 28^th November to 2^nd December 2011.

www.atgtickets.com/miltonkeynes http://uktheatre.tv www.kenwright.com

Reviewed by Sue Marks at Milton Keynes Theatre on Tuesday 22^nd November 2011.

 Strictly Gershwin is on tour after its sell out time at the Albert Hall 

Celebrating the beautiful music of George Gershwin and using it as the foundation for this dance extravaganza is an interesting idea and generally works quite well. All the elements are there – fabulous glittering costumes (Roberta Guidi Di Bagno), gorgeous, lyrical choreography (Derek Deane), effective lighting (Howard Harrison) and most of all the most wonderful music.

On stage Valentine is a charismatic and amusing band leader and kept the ENB orchestra plus the gifted jazz musicians (lead trumpet, lead trombone, saxophones and rhythm section) truly swinging along. He also makes great use of his quartet of singers – Hannah Richmond (haunting performance of ‘Summertime’, Sarah Fuller, Alastair Brookshaw and Ross Sharkey. The performances of the band and the singers really are the keystone of the production. The roars and cheers and prolonged applause for this set of musicians was very well deserved.

This show is directed as a series of set pieces which illustrate a wide variety of dance styles – mostly ballet, but also some jazz, ballroom, and tap. It goes without saying that the quality of dancing is superb. The most interesting interpretation was of An American in Paris which very much conjured up Gene Kelly’s innovative choreography. This section also has the most interesting costumes and creative combinations of characters and staging. This is not to say other scenes are less interesting – they are all quite beautiful.



The screen at the back of the stage which projects images of past Hollywood and its stars is the one aspect of this show that doesn’t work that well. The intermittent projections don’t add anything and are a distraction at times.  

On the whole this show is a great crowd pleaser and a lovely way to lift your spirits.

Catch Strictly Gershwin at Milton Keynes until 19 November

http://www.atgtickets.com/2460/657/Milton-Keynes/Milton-Keynes-Theatre/Strictly-Gershwin-ENB-Tickets or call 0844 871 7652 Booking fee applies  

Visit http://www.ballet.org.uk/strictly-gershwin/strictly-gershwin.html for further details of the tour.  

Glyndebourne has a great season on offer this Autumn and Donizetti’s popular opera buffa exploring greed and matrimony is a fabulous production in all areas – top notch singing, effortless performances, incredible staging, sumptuous costumes and as always, perfect playing from the orchestra under the direction this time of the excellent Enrique Mazzola who whipped the score along in a suitably bright and bouncy fashion. This is a perfect antidote a dull winter’s evening; light, frothy, absurd and great fun.

The opening moments set the tone for the opera very effectively, with the floor to ceiling red velvet curtains opening onto a circular stage rotating to reveal the characters in separate rooms. First, is Don Pasquale asleep in his bed. Dr Malatesta enters pondering his mischievous plan and as the stage turns to reveal Ernesto, slumbering half dressed and part way through writing a love letter, Malatesta appears by climbing through the wardrobe between the rooms. As the stage rotates again revealing Norina at her writing desk, also dozing and halfway through a letter, Malatesta appears through a painting on the wall! The stage continues to rotate as Malatesta visits the characters through the scenery. It’s a really clever and eccentric way to start the evening and this use of the rotating stage is repeated throughout the production to very great effect. The overall staging, costumes and lighting are gorgeous and work together to set up quite beautiful, painterly tableaux. Full credit goes to Julia Hansen’s design and Bernd Purkrabek lighting design plus all designers and makers of the costumes and wigs for the chorus - a stunning white spectacle en masse.

Director Mariame Clément has a real hit on her hands for her debut at Glyndebourne and hopefully this will be the beginning of a long and happy relationship with the company. She has though, re-interpreted the story and this has come in for some criticism. As a result, perhaps the story is less touching than in its original narrative form. It depends on your philosophy - on whether directors should leave well alone or attempt to put their own mark on a work. So, in Clément’s take on the story Norina and Malatesta are clearly having a ‘secret’ affair, and this adds an extra layer to the story and perhaps brings an extra dimension to the dishonesty or cruelty of the story overall.

Jonathan Veira is superb and plays Don Pasquale just right – a touch of arrogance, a touch of stupidity, a touch of eccentricity and all totally believable; he does not play for cheap laughs here. Enea Scala has a clean crisp tone, Ainhoa Garmendia has a soaring soprano and is a fabulous actress; right on top of the emotion, humour, and cruetly of the role. Nicely finishing off this excellent cast is Andrei Bondarenko. This young Ukrainian won the song prize at Cardiff singer of the world this year. He is definitely one to watch as his voice and roles further develop. He is a very good performer and was oddly seductive, charming and sinister in his role as Malatesta.

This is an excellent production and sure to be revived for future seasons.

Don Pasquale plays on Saturday 12^th November

http://www.atgtickets.com/2475/657/Milton-Keynes/Milton-Keynes-Theatre/Don-Pasquale-Tickets or call 0844 871 7652 Booking fee applies

For further details of Glyndebourne on Tour go to http://glyndebourne.com/season/glyndebourne-tour-2011

Theatre Royal Bath Productions presents The Peter Hall Company Production

The Madness of George III

By Alan Bennett   Directed by Christopher Luscombe

At Milton Keynes Theatre

Having premiered at the National Theatre in 1991 Alan Bennett’s The Madness of George III became an international sensation both in the theatre and as an award winning film. Featuring a cast of 24 this play is set in the latter part of King George III’s reign in 1788/9, a few years after he lost the American colonies. It manages to blend politics and serious issues such as mental illness with humour.

George III was born and educated in Britain and was very patriotic; unlike his Hanoverian predecessors. Politically he preferred the Tories to the Whigs, whose leader Charles James Fox he saw as a negative influence over his son and heir, the Prince of Wales. Being a man of high moral standards who was strict with his children, the King found a rapport with the Tory politician William Pitt the Younger.

David Haig is outstanding in the part of George III, giving his all to the role and then some; he fully deserved the standing ovation he got at the end of the performance. I cannot imagine anyone else equalling his performance.   

Queen Charlotte is played by Beatie Edney who gives a strong performance as the King’s wife and mother of his 15 children and is fiercely supportive of her husband throughout.

Christopher Keegan takes the role of the Prince of Wales whose debauched lifestyle is the opposite of his father’s.

King George III was a very likeable man but in 1788 he suffered a mental breakdown which the medical establishment was ill equipped to deal with. It was interesting to see that the King’s own physician, Sir George Baker (Chris McCalphy) could not instigate a diagnosis as protocol did not allow him to speak to the monarch unless he had been spoken to first. It also demonstrates how primitive medicine was then as they didn’t even have stethoscopes as these were not invented until 1816.

 More doctors were brought in, they were; Dr Richard Warren (Madhav Sharma) Sir Lucas Pepys (John Webb) and Dr Francis Willis (Clive Francis). Whilst they agreed the King was suffering a delirium, that is mental disturbance due to a physical illness, they all had different views on the appropriate treatment, some of which was horrendous and led to the King screaming in agony. Once diagnosed as mentally ill the King was no longer the King but had become “the patient” thus reversing the previous protocols so not only did they not have to wait for him to speak to them, they could impose whatever bizarre treatment they saw fit.

There was a suggestion that a Regency Bill should be passed to enable the Prince of Wales to rule instead of the King, however the monarch recovered his wits before it could be passed.

It is now thought that George III’s bouts of madness were due to Porphyria a rare hereditary metabolic disorder. Whilst attacks of the disease can be treated with drugs, there is no actual cure.

The scenery was quite ethereal consisting of panels containing multiple picture frames together with various doors without door frames, however it worked rather well conveying the idea, if not the actuality, of regal halls and galleries.

The costumes were elegant with an emphasis upon uniform; the doctors naturally wore the breeches and hose prevalent at the time whilst the Prince of Wales effected his own style, an enterprise dear to his heart.

This is an excellent play which is thought provoking and entertaining, with the humour balancing some of the more serious scenes.

The Madness of George III plays Milton Keynes Theatre until Saturday 29^th October 2011. Milton Keynes Theatre Box Office 0844 871 7852 (bkg fee)

The tour continues playing Yvonne Arnaud Theatre Guildford from Monday 31^st October to Saturday 5^th November 2011.

www.atgtickets.com/miltonkeynes www.theatreroyal.org.uk http://uktheatre.tv

Reviewed by Sue Marks at Milton Keynes Theatre on Monday 24^th October 2011.

Straight from London's Barbican, South Pacific is at MK theatre ONLY until Saturday but due to exceptionally high demand for tickets extra matinees have been scheduled for 13 and 20 October. There are only a few tickets left for these extra shows. If you miss the show at MK you can try the New Theatre, Oxford where it runs over the Christmas period.

This production started at New York's Lincoln Center and received high praise indeed from critics in the US, coming away with 7 trophies at the Tony awards and playing to sell out audiences for 2 years.  Critics were slightly more reserved in their judgment at the Barbican so it was with some interest that I went to see this show. 

The first night at MK starred Jason Howard as Emile de Becque, a fine baritone and a very well established artist in both the opera and musical fields. He is exceptionally strong of voice. The part of Nellie was played by understudy Carly Anderson, instead of Samantha Womack. Anderson has a lovely voice but seemed quite reserved in her performance. Alex Ferns as Billis was full of energy and cheek. Daniel Koek as Lt. Cable was well suited to the part and has a super voice. However, star of this production is Loretta Ables Sayre as Blood Mary who was by far the outstanding performer and stole the show whenever she was on stage.
 
This is considered one of the finest musicals ever written, and the score includes Some Enchanted Evening, I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair, Happy Talk and There is Nothin' Like a Dame.

Rodgers and Hammerstein have been accused of schmaltz in the past.This story and score has very definite areas of light and shade. Perhaps one of the problems with seeing it in 2011 is that it was written in 1949 and it is showing its age. The world has changed so much in the intervening years and as a comment on race and racism something doesn’t feel right. I was interested as to how the production would tackle these issues and it is fair to say director Bartlett Sher has attempted to  present the story in a ‘gritty’ way. For some reason though, it wasn’t fully effective tonight.

Michael Yearga’s stage design is interesting, especially with his use of blind-type drops which create layers and depth to the stage and scenery.This, along with backdrops and effective lighting by Donald Holder, tie the scenes together very successfully.

A superbly tight orchestra in the pit was a real treat and made the music come alive.

South Pacific is at MK Theatre until Saturday 22 October with EXTRA MATINEES on 13 and 20th October.
Book tickets on 0844 871 7652 (bkg fee) Mon – Sat 9am – 10pm, Sun 10am – 8pm 
or online http://www.atgtickets.com/3014/657/Milton-Keynes/Milton-Keynes-Theatre/South-Pacific-Tickets 

The extensive tour continues at the Palace Theatre Manchester 25 Oct – 5th November. See website for details of all other venues http://southpacificonstage.com/

Three Days in May



Set during three critical days in 1940 when Winston Churchill (Warren Clarke) had just become Prime Minister after the resignation of Neville Chamberlain, this play depicts the grave discussions that the new Prime Minister and his War Cabinet engaged in about how to proceed against Germany’s continued advance across Europe. After the sudden visit of French Prime Minister Paul Reynaud (Timothy Knightly), in which Churchill learns that France is on the brink of surrender and that Reynaud wants Churchill to join him in asking Mussolini to negotiate a peace treaty, the cabinet, consisting of Churchill, Chamberlain, Lord Halifax, Atlee and Greenwood have the immense responsibility of reaching a decision about whether to follow a policy of appeasement or resistance. It is almost impossible to believe now that anything other than resistance was considered but this play shows that giving in to Hitler was considered – and most seriously considered.

The discussions surrounding the decision make for fascinating viewing and this play does have the air of a thriller at times. Even though the outcome of these times is known, the tension whilst the decision is discussed and played out is very intense at times. Churchill has to try to persuade and negotiate with the other members of the war cabinet that Britain must not give in. The dynamic between the different personalities is very well portrayed and this is down to the extremely solid and experienced cast, who have a wealth of stage, film and TV experience between them, and the tight direction of Alan Strachan.

The three main players in the cabinet - Warren Clarke, Robert Demeger and Jeremy Clyde have an on-stage chemistry that is completely believable. Clarke is one of the UK’s most recognised and versatile actors and portrays Churchill brilliantly. At no point does he descend into impersonation or caricature and his portrayal has a solidity and authority to it.



Robert Demeger, as Chamberlain, is excellent, appearing totally broken, both physically and emotionally after the Labour government has refused to serve under him in a coalition government, and his subsequent resignation.

Jeremy Clyde, as Foreign Secretary Halifax, plays a seemingly quiet and gentle character, who keenly wants to follow the appeasement route. His anger and despair at  the cabinet's decision is palpable and his sense of betrayal by Chamberlain is poignant.

Churchill’s young private secretary, Jock Colville, (James Alper) is on stage much of the time at his desk writing (his diaries, perhaps?) and plays the role of narrator. He presents the facts and connects various strands together and is convincing as a promising, young upper class civil servant. Clarke and Alper portray the relationship of Churchill and Colville with humour and sensitivity and Churchill’s fondness for Alper is plain.

Gary Mcann's set and costumes are suitably restrained and realistic. The backdrop projections and lighting of Mark Howett add some dimensionality.

This is a superbly orchestrated production - theatre as it should be: solid, convincing, fascinating and intelligent.

Three Days in May is at Milton Keynes Theatre until 8th October as part of a strictly limited national tour prior to the West End

Then at Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford, 10-15 Oct 
Visit http://www.kenwright.com for details of the West End run. (Not available at time of publication).

Box Office:                0844 871 7652 (bkg fee)

Online Booking:        www.atgtickets.com/miltonkeynes  (bkg fee)