Bill Kenwright presents

Whistle Down The Wind

Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber

Lyrics by Jim Steinman

Based on the original novel by Mary Hayley Bell and the film produced by Richard Attenborough

Reviewed by Sue Marks at Milton Keynes Theatre on Monday 26^th April 2010.

The first surprise was that the setting had changed from its original northern England to Louisiana. This does not detract from the storyline but does give it a distinctly different flavour. That said the major concept of the story i.e. the contrast between childhood innocence and adult cynicism, remains the same.

The foundations of musical theatre lie in its songs and this has some gems, from the eponymously named whistle down the wind through the heavy rock of tire tracks (not surprisingly reminiscent of Meat Loaf since Jim Steinman was heavily involved with “bat out of hell” and its sequel) to the haunting no matter what which was such a success for Boyzone. A particular favourite of mine is the bluesy song the tribe in which the man believed to be Jesus mixes together biblical patriarchs and ‘50s rock and film icons.

The songs can only be as good as their singers and what singers there are here! Headed by the wistful, yet pitch perfect voice of Carly Bawden who takes the part of Swallow. The counterpoint to this is the powerful voice of Jonathan Ansell who takes the other lead role as the man. A rockier sound was provided by Carl Stallwood who plays the bad boy Amos and also by the snake preacher, Leigh Jones, who gave a particularly charismatic performance, so zealous that it was bordering upon frightening. However, musical theatre is less about individuals and more about teamwork and this team is good, particularly within the acoustics of this purpose built theatre, when the cast sing together the sound surrounds you and appears to lift you out of your chair. Whilst the music could have been provided by a pre recorded soundtrack, the icing on the cake was supplied by the live orchestra and the synergy between musicians and players this produces.

The singing must of course be matched by the acting and I was bowled over by the acting abilities of Swallow, Brat and Poor Baby and mention must be made of the professionalism of the children at this venue who come from the local Myra Tiffin performing arts school. Jonathan Ansell demonstrated that not only is he one of the nations best loved voices as a founding member of G4 but he can act as well. These virtuoso performances were ably supported by the rest of the cast and I particularly enjoyed the quiet brooding menace of the sheriff played by Aaron Shirley.

The rear of the set consisted of a ploughed field in three dimensions set at an angle, which I must admit I thought was painted until the children walked on it. The wings were separated by towering columns of hay bales and scenes were changed by dropping and raising various pieces of scenery, enabling the shift from the barn via the house to the street, not forgetting the bar and the railway bridge. Following the fire scene the barn appears to be a burnt out shell and I’m still not sure how they did this, although it must involve removing part of the scenery and casting the rest in shadow. The lighting was quite subtle with the exception of the fire scene, when light, together with a little smoke, gave us a burning barn. I especially enjoyed the full moon which appeared several times, creating a certain ambiance. The props were limited but the motorcycle was extremely effective and the working headlight added a touch of realism.

Andrew Lloyd Webber is undoubtedly the master of musical theatre and this show is no exception, so if you want a show as good as anything in the West End without having to travel to London this is for you.

Whistle Down The Wind plays Milton Keynes Theatre from Monday 26^th April to Saturday 1^st May 2010. Milton Keynes Theatre Box Office 0844 871 7652 (bkg fee).

The tour then continues playing Grand Canal Theatre Dublin from 10^th May to 22^nd May 2010.

www.miltonkeynestheatre.com www.kenwright.com

Reviewed by Sue Marks at Milton Keynes Theatre on Monday 26^th April 2010 on behalf of Catherine Brian.

The 39 Steps

The Gala Theatre, Durham

First published in 1915, John Buchan’s classic novel The 39 Steps has been filmed three times for the silver screen. It is also now a stage show that has wowed the West End and Broadway and continues to play in many major cities across the globe, including Berlin, Paris, Rome, Sydney and Tokyo.

Patrick Barlow’s adaptation is a slick spoof of the quintessential spy story that is a rocking, roller-coaster ride which has the suave and debonair Richard Hannay (brilliantly played by Dugald Bruce-Lockhart) embroiled in a mix of murder and espionage that sees him fleeing his stylish London bachelor pad for the remote Scottish highlands in an effort to clear his name and solve the mystery of the 39 steps.

Only four actors play 139 roles during the performance which lasts just over an hour-and-a-half, and they do so with amazing skill and aplomb. Katharine Kingsley shines as Annabella Schmidt, the femme-fatale who lands our hero into the sticky situation in the first place, and is also wonderful as Margaret, a Glaswegian girl who has married an overbearing farmer, and Pamela, the aloof society girl who eventually falls for Hannay’s charms and aids him in his attempt to prove his innocence. Richard Braine and Dan Starkey make a hilarious double-act as they portray more characters than I could keep track of – their transformations from character to character, with only the aid of a change of accent and hat or coat, are truly outstanding.

However, it is Dugald Bruce-Lockhart’s charismatic performance as the slightly smug Hannay that steals the show. Every mannerism and movement, every nod and nuance is carefully crafted and perfectly honed. He strikes the right balance between dashing hero and unscrupulous cad and has the audience firmly in the palm of his hand throughout the entire performance.

Peter McKintosh is to be congratulated for his beautiful set design, which is as functional as it is beautiful. The use of a limited number of props to denote differing scenes and settings is inventiveness bordering on pure genius. Maria Aitken’s direction ensures that the pace is never anything short of frenetic and the comedy and parody are skilfully intertwined with suspense and romance.

It is little wonder that this gem of a production has notched up two TONY awards during its Broadway run, an Olivier award in the West End, and thrilled audiences for almost half a decade. You’d be mad to miss it!

Steve Burbridge.

Runs until Saturday 1st May 2010. 

Cathy Crabb’s comedy Beautiful House returns to the Library Theatre stage in a full-blown professional production after its success in the 2009 Re:play Festival.

Middle-aged, middle-class Bridgette and Ronnie appear to have come down in the world with a bang when they take up residence in one of Salford’s less salubrious tower blocks.  The mystery of how they find themselves exiled from the rural idyll of Delph and living cheek-by-jowl with neighbours like pink-velour-track-suited Paula and chavvy Otis is eventually revealed over several fraught and occasionally alcohol-fuelled encounters.

The title is a metaphor that works on several levels.  Bridgette’s beautiful house is the rambling wreck she’s spent years renovating; for Otis, it’s the dream of a better life for his family a long way from the inner-city.  But to Paula, who (astonishingly) works on reception at the Manchester Museum and has become obsessed with Egyptology, “Beautiful House” means the special place where bodies go to be eviscerated before they are mummified. 

Cathy Crabb’s script is brilliantly funny, littered with killing one-liners, hilarious anecdotes and sharply detailed observation of life.  Her characters are raw and sometimes painful to watch, especially Ronnie and Bridgette with their shockingly cruel and destructive relationship - Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? has nothing on this.  Janice Connolly, all condescending air and semi-refined accent, convincingly reverts to Bridgette’s native Failsworth idiom at the drop of a hat, and John Henshaw blusters about as her dull but dependable chemistry teacher husband.

Sally Carman is very funny but slightly cartoony as Paula - I miss the blend of the pathetic and the ridiculous which Cathy Crabb herself brought to the part last year.  However James Foster, reprising his role as nice-but-dim Otis, is superb once again.  His wordless reaction to Paula’s holiday story is unforgettable, a really great piece of acting.

Did I mention that it’s funny?  The cast has the audience roaring the whole way through, while Noreen Kershaw’s direction keeps the whole thing on an even keel.  A great evening’s entertainment.

Beautiful House is on until Saturday 8 May 2010

Prices: £8.00-£18.00 (concessions available)

Eves: Mon-Thurs @ 7.30pm; Fri & Sat @ 8pm

Matinees: Thurs & Sat @ 3pm

Box Office: 0161 236 7110

www.librarytheatre.com

Macbeth is currently showing in the Abbey Theatre until May 15^th, 2010. Directed by Jimmy Fay, written by William Shakespeare and starring award winning actress Eileen Walsh you can almost hear the sounds of footsteps running to the Abbey to buy tickets but overall I would have to say, unless you are studying it in school/college you won’t walk away with a life changing or brilliantly entertaining night.

The stage design, costume and theatrics are second to none, as are all of the Abbey’s productions but in raising the question “how many times have we all come across Shakespeare Macbeth” I was hoping to be brought on a journey that wowed me but instead I was brought on the typical theatrical production of Macbeth, which was disappointing.

Eileen Walsh takes on the role of Lady Macbeth but I couldn’t help thinking that the role must have been insultingly easy for her. I think we all would have loved to see her explore more areas of Lady Macbeth particularly in the second half but unfortunately Fay left it unexplored which was disappointing. For those of you who are not familiar with Eileen Walsh, you might remember her in the Magdalene sisters (2002), where she played the role of “Crispina”.

Another well known face in there is Michael McElhatton who plays the role of Banquo. You may be familiar with McElhatton from starring in the hilarious “Fergus’s Wedding” and “Paths to Freedom” many moons ago as well as “Spin the bottle”. McElhatton’s stage presence is excellent and he commands the stage brilliantly, bringing us on the journey of a well thought, humble and Nobel gentleman, almost overshadowing the lead.

Oh by the way the programme is something definitely worth grabbing. The arts council have a page in their letting you know that you (the tax payer) contributed €75 million in 2009 to the Arts council (that’s about €1 a week for every household) to fund the arts in the country. Nice work!

For more information on this production or to book your tickets if you’re going to go along to see it visit: http://www.abbeytheatre.ie/whats_on/event/957

Robin Stewart
UK Theatre Network/Irish Reviewers   

A cracking one act comedy.

A well directed, superbly acted comedy romp.

The play, about a down on his luck tramp called Stanley, is set in Brighton and is told in merely one act. When Tim, a hapless Londoner who has come to Brighton for a conference asks Stanley for directions the twists and turns of the night lead to chaos, mayhem and illegal activity. With a well written, tight script the play runs at a very good pace reaching to a satisfying conclusion. All of the audience loved this play. The writing is golden. I was a fan of the writers , Warren Drew's, previous work, The Common Good. So I did expect good things.

It has some cracking one liners including this: 'Tim - UK Gold is now called Dave...because everyone knows someone called Dave. Stanley - They should have called it c***. Everyone knows one of them!'

So perhaps to not go if you are easily offended. If however, you want to see a cracking play that you will laugh all the way through then go see this when it transfers to the West End.

Leaves you wanting more.

Four stars.

It’s been a long time since I saw a play at Taurus, and in the interim it has either been brilliantly revamped to make the tiny, cramped downstairs bar into a viable performance space with decent viewing lines, or emerging theatre company Organised Chaos have worked wonders to create an almost site-specific production which cleverly evokes the genteel and refined pleasures of an upmarket tearoom. 

We come down the basement stairs to find two couples tête-à-tête at neighbouring tables which are decked out with all the accoutrements of a leisurely and indulgent afternoon tea.  The white linen tablecloths, fine china, teapots and cafetières, not to mention the laden cake stands and mouth-watering array of pastries, made me want to summon a waitress and look at a menu at once - designer Alice Allen’s attention to detail is spot on.

What playwright Lindsay Kernahan and director Emma France then set up is a Siamese-twin of a comedy, with styles of writing and acting almost diametrically opposed, as the couples chat over their refreshments and intriguing stories come to separate but equally dramatic climaxes.

Jean (Celia Carron) and Poppy (Dianne Rimmer) are nicely turned-out ladies who lunch - or in this case, take tea.  Being of a certain age their conversations range across all the problems that can beset a woman in her middle years - ex-husbands, new partners, grown-up children, antisocial cats, transgender internet dating - that kind of thing.  With just a hint of the Cheshire Set about them (though that set is perhaps more Hollyoaks than Wilmslow) their bantering northern humour is reminiscent of Alan Bennett and Victoria Wood, and the characterisations are broad without being over-the-top.  I don’t know whether first-night nerves caused these scenes to played at a snail’s pace with Pinteresque pauses, but the snappy comic dialogue seemed to demand something a great deal less languid.

At the next table William (Laurence Pickford) and Abigail (Julie Burrow) are in a more modern and downbeat style of comedy.  William is divorcing his wife to be with his much younger girlfriend, but their long weekend away in the country is not turning out to be as romantic as anticipated, partly due to the age gap, and partly due to Abigail’s jealousy and William’s wandering eye.  The two actors establish a convincing relationship, conveying genuine emotion and even arousing our sympathy.  The humour comes less from the dialogue than the playing - small but true moments, such as when the slightly vain and self-absorbed William includes the whole audience in his lascivious stare, or glimpses his own smile in the wall mirror and stops to admire it.

Tonight’s performance really tweaked the audience’s funnybone.  If you miss the company’s work this time around there’s a further opportunity to catch one of their previous Taurus shows at the Buxton Fringe Festival this summer.

Evenings: 22nd to 24th April @ 7.30pm

Matinee: Sat 24^th @ 5pm

Tickets: £7 (£5 conc) from Quaytickets: 0843 208 0500 or www.quaytickets.com

Taurus Bar

1 Canal Street
Manchester

M1 3HE

www.organisedchaosproductions.co.uk

www.taurus-bar.co.uk

A performance piece presented by Homo Promos and written by Peter Scott-Presland Strip Search tells the story of Squaddie, a male stripper who used to be a soldier. In between the stage show Squaddie is giving in a gay bar, he tells the story of his life as he remembers it. He discusses his fans and his experience as a stripper, his early career as a rent boy and how he got to meet his mate Christian who joined the army shortly after Squaddie. Christian was badly injured in Iraq and died alone in a shabby flat in Brixton with no-one to hold his hand. This memory is still more than Squaddie can bear.

Titus Rowe, the performer and choreographer of the show, has worked extensively in cabarets across the country as well as internationally. He has worked as a solo vocalist, performing a wide range of music including swing, big band, musical theatre, and pop and rock ballads as well as performing as a compere and M.C. Titus has worked as a stripper under his alternative stage name - College Boy, for which he won the much coveted Stripper of the Year 2009 award, as voted by the readers of Boyz Magazine. Titus has a wonderful rapport with the audience and his acting is as convincing as his stripping..

The performance contains strong language and full frontal nudity.

2 March – 21 March, Tue – Fri 9.30 pm, no show Sun and MonTickets: £ 8 / £ 6 (concessions
See Unburied Treasures and Strip Search on the same evening for £15 / £12 (concs.)
BOX OFFICE: 020 7704 6665
The Rosemary Branch, 2 Shepperton Road, London N1 3DT

The composer-parodist Mark Bunyan presents his new revue Unburied Treasures at the Rosie. His new show is directed by Karen Rabinowitz who also choreographed Bunyan’s musical Just Good Friends. The mood of the revue is set by the stage design – a black coffin with flowers is sitting on a platform. We soon learn from Jo and Mo (Haydn and Mozart) in a cheerful song that they became victims of posthumous decapitation - their heads were stolen by phrenologists eager to study the bumps on their skulls. Macabre indeed – and very funny! The show features the posthumous adventures of famous corpses from Christopher Columbus to Evita, with appearances by Errol Flynn, Mozart, Haydn, Daniel Boone, Shelley, David Livingstone and others along the way. The talented cast is comprised of Adam Walker, Jack Summers, James Smoker, Jessica Sherman and Tom McLean play the dead celebs with gusto and sing their hearts out for the dead in songs like Happy in Hollywood, Lincoln – A Melodrama, and The Bones of Boone. Musical direction by Peter Wilson.

April – 9 May, Tue – Sat 7.30 pm, Sun 3.00 pm
Tickets: £ 12 / £ 10 (concessions)
BOX OFFICE: 020 7704 6665The Rosemary Branch, 2 Shepperton Road, London N1 3DT

'We have become deep down unmoored... '

This, according to writer/director John Clancy, is the current malaise prevalent in the 21st century and we are all victims of this way of living.

Clancy's 60 minute one-man show THE EVENT, running at the Cochrane Theatre until Saturday, has had previous success at last year's Edinburgh Festival, winning a Fringe First and at a subsequent festival in Australia. On it's current outing, however, it seems to have lost some of its bite and energy. It's not an ideal venue, it has to be said. A studio or 'in the round' setting would be more fitting for an intimate show of this nature.

It's a fairly clever idea - having the actor - 'THE MAN' onstage, speaking to an audience - 'THE STRANGERS' demystifing the theatrical process that we accept in order to listen to actors 'acting out' a writer's message. Once you've grasped this though - there are no more surprises. Except perhaps when THE MAN pretends he's forgotten his lines and yes indeed, we do momentarily believe he has.

The essence of the piece is the rant of a middle-aged man about the way society is today; the lack of what he feels is true communication, the speed of living, the need to be continually 'available' and contactable to all and sundry, even if you don't want to be and the basically alienated mode of living we now accept and believe to be our idea of an 'integrated' society. Everything is an illusion these days, we are all living a lie. Every man is an island it's been said, and even more so today it seems. There are some isolated moments of 'connection' we experience along the way, that keep us going, but it's all downhill from now on.

Yes, there's a central crux or heart of the piece - a 'rant' and we are drawn into this as THE MAN guides us through the technical steps as to how he achieves this, through the direction & the work of the previously mentioned technician somewhere out there in the dark pressing the same series of buttons night after night. The pool of light focuses in on THE ACTOR as he moves into a seated position on the chair, rolls up his sleeves and leans forward to entice us further in to what he has to say and draw us in it does. But it's a rant that needs more rancour and energy to really stir our guts.

David Calvitto has a likeable energy and certainly holds the attention in his delivery in this deconstructive piece about reality and illusion and it's a nice idea to use the theatrical metaphor, but ultimately in terms of what this piece wants to say, you're left wanting more of 'an event'.

THE EVENT

Cochrane Theatre

20-25 April 2010

020 8807 5770

info@theatretoursinternational.com

www.theatretoursinternational.com