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Chicago
Bob Fosse |
Cast: John
Altman (Billy Flynn); Leyla Pellegrini (Roxie Hart); Amra-Faye Wright
(Velma Kelly); Martin Callaghan (Amos Hart); Marjorie Keys (Matron 'Mama'
Morton); Morgan Crowley (Mary Sunshine) plus an all-star supporting
cast
Lyrics: Fred Ebb
Music:
John Kander
Book: Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse
Director: Walter Bobbie
Musical Director: James Dunsmore
Choreography: Ann Reinking (Original New York production in the
style of Bob Fosse) based on Bob Fosse's original production's choreography
recreated by Gary Chryst
Designers:
John Lee Beatty (Scenes); William Ivey Long (Costumes); Ken Billington
(Lighting)
Executive Producer: Max Finbow
Venue: Playhouse, Greenside Place, Edinburgh
Dates: 20 November - 1 December 2001
Reviewer: Pat Napier
Chicago is a truly, madly deeply fantastic musical, right out
of Hollywood and Broadway's top drawer of glitz and razzamatazz, born
out of a unique collaboration between Fred Ebb, John Kander and the
amazing Bob Fosse. It fizzes like premier grand cru champagne,
whose last bubbles float up to the top of the glass with the same magical
energy and impact as the first ones. It kicks off its very first UK
tour here in Edinburgh.
Last night, everything worked - as it rarely does - to sweep the audience
into an exhilarating, exciting maelstrom of music, song and dance. We
entered the theatre to see a giant gold picture frame with a simple
chair at its extreme left, with a bowler hat hanging from its back.
The curtain behind it rose to reveal another raked, sloping gold frame
enclosing the musicians, amongst whom the cast wove in and out.
From
the moment Go-to-hell Kitty announced that we were about to hear a tale
of "murder, greed, violence, corruption, exploitation, adultery,
treachery" (unlikely themes for a smash hit musical) and the first
of the dancers snatched up the hat, we were immediately plunged into
the middle of Al Capone's lawless Chicago night club life with All
that jazz and full of hot jazz, leggy raunchy dancing and skimpily
dressed singers and dancers. The whole action is black on black shot
through with cleverly-lit flesh. Only rarely do we see colour. But who
needed it?
Roxie, a night club dancer, having shot her lover is sent to jail but
not before her her sharp hot-shot lawyer Billy Flynn turns her into
a celebrity. The reigning queen of the jail is the dancer Velma Kelly
who sees Roxie as a major threat. But nobody does anything unless Mama
Morton, the jail's Matron, says so and she's just as corrupt as any
of them. The trial is a farce orchestrated by Flynn, who gets Roxie
off by inventing a fake pregnancy and manipulating her husband, the
wonderfully pathetic Amos. All ends predictably, with the high point
coming in Bob Fosse's own choreography of the glittering, colourful
Hot Honey Rag.
In a high octane, ultra high speed atmosphere, where the pace never
slackened, we were all dazzled. So many references to Hollywood and
Broadway flashed before our eyes that we couldn't keep up. Wonderful
songs such as Amos's Mr Cellophane spilled out reminding us irresistibly
of Nicely-Nicely Johnson in Guys and Dolls.
Roxie
was played by the understudy Leyla Pellegrini who was just fantastic.
But it isn't fair to single anyone out over the rest, none of whom could
be faulted. The star, John Altman, who cut his villain's teeth as Nick
Cotton in Eastenders, appeared a teensy bit static and slowish,
and might be construed as the weakest member of the cast. But...
that's purely comparative, given that the dance pace was frenetic. The
jazz band closed the show and was outstanding, playing two memorable,
uninhibited sets of their own. The audience showed the cast how much
they loved the show by a variety of whistles, roars, applause, clapping
in time to the music, some quiet singing and, indeed, almost exited
high kicking. Truly a show to see over again - if you can get a ticket!
© Pat Napier. 21 November 2001
Run ends: 1 December 2001 then goes to Sunderland and Oxford
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