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| Edinburgh : A&E : Festivals : Fringe Reviews |
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 Musicals & Opera |
Rating Guide None = Unmissable 
= UnwatchablePage number refers to the Fringe programme
Drams Company Arts Educational Based on the screenplay Men by Doris Dorrie Music Jimmy Roberts Book & Lyrics Joe Di Pietro Musical Director Simon Sharp Director John Cusworth Producer Melanie Schouw Date 23 August 2005 Venue Bedlam Theatre (venue 49) Address 11b Bristo Place Reviewer Mairi Anderson This is a witty, clever, contemporary musical well delivered by the young cast from Tring Park Performing Arts and Academic School. This new musical comes from established writers Joe Di Pietro and Jimmy Roberts. They have had great success internationally with I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change which has run on the Fringe in 2004 and 2005. The story is well written and doesn’t pull its punches about modern relationships. The plot is simple. Lucy, ignored by husband Tom, falls in love with Sebastian. Tom (in disguise) moves in with Sebastian as a roommate to try to wreck the relationship. As her lover changes into the man he thinks she wants him to be, he becomes indistinguishable from her husband. This scenario allows the writers to explore modern relationships, identity and the price we pay for our choices.
Will Stokes has a wonderfully mobile and expressive face, as well as a gift for physical theatre. He gleefully plays a whole host of roles. His priest, Maitre D’ and waiter could have their own sitcom. Nathalie Clarke also plays her plethora of roles with style, humour and charm. In the lead roles, Michael Harris (Tom), Jon Hawkins (Sebastian) and Lisa Bridge (Lucy) create such warm, believable characters that our allegiances constantly change with them. The blossoming romance between Lucy and Sebastian expressed in Take Me into You is matched by the tenderness between Lucy and Tom evident in Make Me a Promise. Both songs are beautifully and sensitively delivered. Musical accompaniment is provided on keyboard and piano. Sets and costumes are simple. The wonderful vocal harmonies peak during New Beautiful Man and the moral of the tale is spelled out in the finale:- you can’t have it all, no matter what the 80’s promised! Every choice we make excludes other options. If you enjoyed I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change you would like this show. As an incisively witty, insightful, thought-provoking review of relationships and expectations, I can recommend it. © Mairi Anderson. 24 August 2005. Published on www,edinburghguide.com Run continues Aug 24-27: 18.00 (1 hr 25mins) £8.50 (conc. £6.50)
Your Name. [Date you wrote the review eg 15 August 2003]. Published on www.edinburghguide.com Run: August 9. 12, 20, 22 at 20:00 and August 14, 23 at 18:00 [Dates if there's a run. Ignore otherwise]
European Premiere Drams None Company Aurora / Western Connecticut State University Cast Sean Duggan Josephs (Duke Orsino); Colleen C. DiTarando (Viola); Cheryl Haller (Maria); Ryan Bair (Malvolio); Jennifer van Buskirk (Olivia) Producer Frank Herbert Adapted and directed by Sal Trapani Musical Director Jay Stollman Dates 6-28 August 2005 Venue Gilded Balloon Teviot (Venue 14) Address 13 Bristo Square Reviewer Mairi Anderson
The show comes with a remarkably good pedigree. It is directed by Sal Trapani, who is known internationally for his work as a director, writer and composer in addition to his role as Professor of Theatre at Western Connecticut State University. The Musical Director Jay Stollman writes, produces and performs for TV and film. His credits include Sex and the City and the District and his music company has won the Mobius Award for Best Original Music. At first sight it might seem a tall order to combine a Shakespearean play with a 60s musical, but it works very well. The timelessness of Shakespeare’s wisdom easily translates to 1960s San Francisco and the songs are wittily matched to the key themes of Twelfth Night. You make me feel ike a natural woman and Please don’t let me be misunderstood enhance our appreciation of the misunderstandings about gender and disguise around which the play pivots. The choice of It’s not Unusual for Malvolio is another example of witty matching of music and action. The cast succeed in being able to deliver a great song and dance show without losing the depth of Shakespeare’s message. Sean Duggan Josephs as Duke Orsino and Colleen C. DiTarando as Viola both have the stage presence and vocal delivery to particularly bring out the beauty of the lines, but all of the cast of 14 are excellent. Cheryl Haller’s Mariah and Ryan Bair’s Malvolio are also worthy of singling out.
Stage design and costumes are both excellent, capturing the period well. Lighting and sound quality are also good. If you like Shakespeare you will like this show. If you love 60s music you will love this show. If you are a 1970’s English graduate, you will really love this show! © Mairi Anderson. Published on www.edinburghguide.com Run continues Aug 6-11th, 16-18, 23-25: 14.45 (1 hr 15 mins) £10 (£9 conc.) Aug 12-14, 19-21, 26-28: 14.45 (1 hr 15 mins) £12 (£10 conc.)
Twelfth Night – The Musical (page
126)
If you know Twelfth Night and like the idea of a pantomime version -
lots of pauses for song and knowing asides - then this is the perfect show for
you. If you want to see some proper Shakespeare, or to find the sweet languorous
pain of unrequited love which is the real heart of this play, then don't go.
Drams None Company Stage 84 Yorkshire School of Performing Arts Cast Principals Michael Jowett (Tony); Kayleigh Stephenson (Maria); Craig Winward (Bernardo); Olivia McGorlick (Anita); Jack P. Shepherd (Riff); Jonny Dixon (Officer Krupke) Music Leonard Bernstein Lyrics Stephen Sondheim Musical Director/Keyboards Paul Phenny Director Giles Atkinson Choreographer Rebecca Gilbertson Production Co-ordinator Elizabeth Hellmich Sound Dave McReady Lighting Neil Myers Dates 8-13 August Venue James Gillespie's High School (Venue 93) Address Lauderdale Street Reviewer Nick Scott It caused a sensation when first produced in 1957. It brought together four of the greatest-ever talents of the musical theatre - Arthur Laurents (Book), Stephen Sondheim (Lyrics), Jerome Robbins (Choreography) and Leonard Bernstein (Music). The newspapers of the time hailed it as, 'a work of art' which is one of the reasons why, over the years, it has maintained a unique place in the musical theatre repertoire and in the hearts of audiences worldwide. I am, of course, referring to West Side Story. And thanks to Festival Fringe stalwarts - Stage 84 The Yorkshire School of Performing Arts - we can once again enjoy this 'classic' of modern musical theatre. We have come to expect a high standard from this company and this year's production, directed by Giles Atkinson, reaffirmed their enviable reputation. With its powerful and demanding musical score, gripping physical theatre and energetic choreography, West Side Story can stretch the resources of any theatre company (amateur or professional); but from the opening scene, this fine production soon dispels any doubts. From the show's Prologue with its menacing rivalry between the two gangs - The Jets and The Sharks - to the final unyielding climax, the unrelenting pace never faltered for a moment. Bearing in mind that the average age of the cast is (I guess) around 16 years, their treatment and interpretation of what is essentially and 'adult' theme (both dramatically and emotionally) was undeniably compelling. The show also requires terrific physical stamina, and once again these young actors proved that their skills were more than adequate for the task.
As each individual character, regardless of status, contributed to the overall success of this production, it is a difficult task in deciding who merits special mention. Therefore, I might be excused for concentrating on a few of the leading characters and scenes which I consider especially noteworthy. Jack P. Shepherd (away from his television role as David Platt in the long-running soap, Coronation Street) gave an outstanding performance as Riff (the Leader of the Jets). With a fine singing voice too; he proved more than a match for this energetically demanding role. His opposite number, the character of Bernardo (Leader of The Sharks), was portrayed with menacing confidence by Craig Winward. The opening Jet Song with strong vocal support from the ensemble is also worth mentioning. Precise and slick ensemble work was also in evidence during the Tonight (Reprise), featured in the penultimate scene of Act 1.
The vocally gifted Kayleigh Stephenson was particularly outstanding. Given her age, her astonishing vocal skill coupled with a well-focussed tonal clarity, this talented young lady has all the potential for a successful career in the theatre. With Olivia McGorlick as the vivacious Anita, the pair gave a vocally stunning performance of the operatic-style duet, A Boy Like That. Light relief from the tense plot is provided by the Jets in the cleverly staged (somewhat akin to vaudeville) and highly entertaining number, Officer Krupke!. Musical Director, Paul Phenny is to be commended for his interpretation of the music and for 're-creating' Bernstein's masterful score for keyboard. A skilled instrumentalist in his own right, Phenny has painstakingly studied Bernstein's score, and with careful and tasteful 'voicing', he has successfully 'reproduced' an extremely convincing orchestral sound. Once again, well done Stage 84 for giving us another 'winner'; and with the cast and production team already looking forward to next year's production of Jesus Christ Superstar, we eagerly await your return.
Run dates: 9 - 13 August (19.15); 13 August (14.00)
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