LONDON TRIP REVIEWS

Nov 00

Despite floods, landslides and travel chaos, I ventured once more to the capital this winter to see the joys of the London stage in all their glory. One positive factor to come from the rail melee was that I could squeeze one extra performance in on the final day - and as you'll see if you read that far, I'm very glad I could. Once again I've decided to jot down my thoughts on these shows for your benefit - I managed to see eight shows in five days this time, and all of them musicals for a change.

The King and I - London Palladium
Having read that Claire Moore was playing Anna rather than Elaine Paige at some performances, I had pondered (before booking) whether to specifically book one such performance. I've never been a huge fan of Elaine, and though curious to see her on stage, I felt (from seeing her in Miss Saigon) that Claire could potentially be much better in the role. In the end, I opted to book "blindly" and wait and see. It is for this reason that I was rather pleased to see a nigh-life-size poster in the foyer stating that Ms. Moore would be Anna in this performance. If you definitely want to see Elaine Paige, make sure to check when booking that she's in that performance. On the whole, the songs in The King and I have never really set me on fire. As a result, I was not expecting a great deal from the score. Though there were large sections where the music "did nothing for me", as they say, there were other sections where seeing the show in all its glory added so much more than can ever be gleaned from either the film or CD. Strong performances from the cast, in particular Claire Moore and Paul Nakauchi (the king) ensured that the very best of justice was done to the piece, both dramatically and musically, and the cuteness of the children softened the hearts of everyone. The real highlight of the show, though, were the sumptuous visuals (less of a set design than a theatre design) - bright oriental costumes and décor spreading out of the stage and into the auditorium. The only glitches were some questionable diction and imperfections in the sound system that left you straining for the words in places. All in all though, an excellent start to the trip.

The Phantom of the Opera - Her Majesty's Theatre
It was perhaps inevitable that this wouldn't live up to the cast of last year (which I think was the best cast overall for a number of years). On the whole, the players were uninspiring - though they performed the pieces well enough, there was no spark. This is not necessarily as harsh a criticism as it sounds, I think this is a difficult piece to get just-so, and I'm not saying that the performance was poor, far from it, but just that the little extra shine (that was there last year) was lacking. The major contributing factor was probably the below-par Phantom (Scott Davies), sadly the poorest I've seen/heard for a number of years (though the standard has been exceptional). Conversely, one performance that did stand out was Christine (Charlotte Page) who had a splendidly strong voice, and gave one of the best performances in that role for equally as long. The romanticism of the Lloyd Webber score and the overall feel of the show still makes this a winner, but (call me a perfectionist) the performance was not quite as good as I know it can be.

Napoleon - Shaftesbury Theatre
Another European-themed musical (will there ever be an end to them?) and another show battered by the press. I'll say straight away that this year I've seen Lautrec, Notre-Dame, and La Cava, and this is not the worst by a considerable margin. Having said that, I don't think it will last - primarily because of the reception by the press. The score tries to be a little too grand and emotional a little too often, and the lyrics are questionable on occasion, but the piece flies through the evening with wonderful abandon. The set is well thought-out, using reflections from a mirror above the stage, and a Whistle Down the Wind-style split-stage effect to add a little dramatic impact where necessary. As the rest of the cast use standard English accents, it took a while to get used to a Germanic Napoleon (the "at certain performances" Uwe Kroger), but this aside, he played the part with the gusto it deserved. The other leads were equally emphatic - David Burt was effective as the manipulating Talleyrand and Anastasia Barzee was strong as Josephine. A low turnout in the audience department meant slightly lacklustre applause throughout, but a more hearty appreciation came at the end, especially for the orchestra after their musical epilogue. One point to note if you do go to see this - don't get seats A17 to 20 in the Royal Circle unless you're well over six-foot tall, or you won't see the front quarter of the stage (which is important in places).

Fosse - Prince of Wales Theatre
Having seen this for the first time earlier in the year, I was keen to see it again - it's just as well I did as it shall sadly soon depart to make way for the transferring Witches of Eastwick (more of which later). I really cannot praise this highly enough. Dance and choreography aren't often the main reason for seeing a West-End show, especially for me, but here they take centre stage. The music and singing that support the spectacle are faultless, and with minimal set, the dancers move and (at times) throw themselves across the stage with notable precision and finesse. I'll mention for those of you that "don't like dance" that I'm not a big fan of dance either, but the work of Bob Fosse, especially as portrayed here, is exquisite stuff - energetic, vitalising, touching and poignant - a wholly different proposition. If you haven't been to see this yet, do so quickly before it goes - truly mesmeric.

The Beautiful Game - Cambridge Theatre
I saw the "making of" South Bank show a few weeks before seeing this and wasn't impressed with the snippets of score/songs, so I was not expecting to like this. In fact, I was expecting to actively dislike a great deal of the show, especially as I've never been over-fond of Ben Elton or his humour, and as I didn't like his only stage work to date, Popcorn. Add to this the exasperating, frustrating nature of the subject matter ("the troubles") and the notoriously difficult-to-cover subject of football and I was not looking forward to the evening's entertainment. Despite all of the above, which remain true, and though I didn't particularly 'like' it, I didn't actively dislike the show either. The characters are well drawn, the humour, though patchy, is definitely funny in places (I did laugh - despite myself, on occasion), the score is 'ok' (but no better - I prefer almost everything else of Lloyd Webber), and despite a frustrating subject/plot it manages to be thought provoking as well. By midway through the first half, I was drawn in - more so when (wisely) the football aspect faded away. Depressing despite the faintly optimistic ending, it's a subject that chews at people perhaps too much at the present time. It's a worthy attempt to cover a contentious subject, and certainly brave of them to do so, but perhaps the subject is a still a little too close to home. Overall, it was handled deftly, but due to the proximity and tone of the subject matter, it propagates no real affection for it (at least in me) and I certainly shan't be going again.

Mamma Mia - Prince Edward Theatre
Still packing them in at every performance is the hugely popular Mamma Mia. On the night, the cast weren't quite as good as the (excellent) original cast I saw last year, but it was still very easy to see why this is such a big hit. The songs of Abba are easy on the ear and add to the overall tone of this lively and fizzing show. It's nice to see/hear that Waterloo (the one big hit not in the show itself) has been added to the encore - I don't recall it being there last year, but I may be mistaken. Bright, breezy, fun stuff and a wonderful way to remedy the depression resulting from The Beautiful Game the previous evening. I don't really need to say it, but - marvellous - "book early to avoid disappointment".

The Witches of Eastwick - Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
After looking forward to this, I wavered after seeing some extracts on BBC's Children in Need programme the previous evening, which came across as somewhat lifeless - but I tempered this as Fosse was also featured, and came across in a similar way, even though I knew that was excellent. I needn't have worried though, this is a show full of "fun" - an unadulterated, unabashed, off-beat, bright, laugh-out-loud funny musical comedy of the highest order. Lisa Pearce replaced Maria Friedman for this performance (they look very alike on stage, incidentally), but I can't see that this made any difference to the quality of the performance, as she was as excellent as the other leads, and indeed the whole cast. Lucie Arnaz and Joanna Riding make up the triumvirate responsible for conjuring up the devilishly charming Daryl Van Horne. I had heard that some critics weren't too complementary about Ian McShane (Daryl) but I could certainly find no fault - superbly debonair, suave, charming and disarming (somewhere between Jack Nicholson and Al Pacino). All sing their songs with aplomb and in the spirit of the show as a whole - and there are some excellent (and very catchy) songs in what is a very good score. The sets are equally bright and comic, simply and effectively setting the white-picket-fence nature of the town, and the devil's boudoir that is Daryl's house. A clever moving backdrop adds much to the feel of the show, but on occasion also tended to distract from the action rather than facilitate it, which was, well, distracting. On the action side, the much-mentioned flying scene has been criticised for the (very) visible nature of the wires involved, but this is nit-pickery - "willing suspension of disbelief" I believe the phrase is - you may also complain that the characters keep bursting into song all the time - how unrealistic… Originally intended for a smaller theatre, it will soon be moving to the more intimate Prince of Wales, which should improve the show further - then you'll be even harder-pushed to find a more entertaining evening out in the West End.

Fame - Victoria Palace
A last minute addition to a trip extended by the rail crisis, and even then, only as it was close enough to the coach station for me to get the overnight bus back to the (ahem) sunny North East. Even so, I debated whether to go to see it - I'm very glad I did though, very glad indeed. This is a fantastic show in which (as one small boy commented in the interval) "they move very quickly". Mazz Murrey and Nicola Dawn (who I remember was also impressive in Copacabana a few years ago) were standout performers, but the cast was generally excellent. If I was going to be strict about it, Nikki Wilson (understudy) who played Carmen, and who sang the title song at the end, had too sharp a voice for the role (and the song), but really this is being harsh. This is a bright and thoughtful production brimming with energy and enthusiasm, and again, I can't recommend it highly enough. With this being at the Victoria Palace, this is normally the point I have to say "what a shame about the half-empty auditorium" - not so on this evening, however. For the first time in five years I saw it full to bursting - even though it was Saturday night, it was still nice to see.

With Witches and Fame on the last day, the trip ended on a high note, which made it strangely easier to make the long journey back "oop North" and away from the capital once more. Annoying though it was that due to the rail shambles I could have made it to the US in the time it took me to get back from London, it was still well worth it. Once again the theatre lights the way in a dreary winter (which is now into its 14th month by my reckoning). Anyway, a very merry Christmas to all of you, and a very prosperous 2001.

END.

(Nov 2000/ David Heppell / david.heppell@eidosnet.co.uk