Irving Berlin’s White Christmas – REVIEW

Irving Berlin’s White Christmas The Musical – Gala Performance

Dominion Theatre, London

 

Reviewed by Mark Sykes

Seen November 25th, 2019

★★★★

This reviewer, at the ripe old age of 55(!), has literally spent a lifetime watching the classic White Christmas movie, so having missed out on seeing this production when it premiered at the Curve, Leicester in December 2018, I was really looking forward to finally seeing this story come to life on-stage – and thankfully the evening lived up to my expectations.

Without getting too much into the details of a story that no doubt the majority of readers will be familiar with, it focuses on two WW2 army veterans (Wallace and Davis) who become a major song-and-dance act after their careers end. They bump into the Haynes sisters, who are also a popular song-and-dance act with a burgeoning career. They all end up at a winter lodge in Vermont that is sadly lacking any snow. Wallace and Davis bump into their former General, the owner of the lodge, who has bills piling up as the lack of snow means a dearth of paying customers. Wallace, Davis and the Haynes sisters concoct a plan to put on a Christmas concert at the lodge to help out the General. The parallel story is one of love between the army veterans and the two sisters – one relationship comes easy, the other needs some matchmaking to be done!

The staging at the Dominion Theatre focuses on the barn at the lodge where the Christmas concert is to be held. The simple wooden structure enables the various sets to seamlessly transition between scenes, whether it’s a New York ballroom, a train carriage, or the reception of the Vermont lodge. Interestingly, the band were situated on-stage to the left of the audience and split over two levels of the barn. For me this worked well (as it wasn’t a large orchestra) and enabled them to support some of the scenes more effectively than if they’d been hidden away elsewhere. I particularly loved the neon lighting that often featured in the set design created by Michael Taylor, and overall everything worked well whether it was simple or complex scene.

The highlights of the show for me happened on the big song-and-dance numbers. The vast expanse of the Dominion stage provided ample space for all of the cast to be involved in Stephen Mear’s wonderful choreography. On more than one occasion these big numbers had me thinking back to the recent hit production of 42^nd Street which was impressively led by Clare Halse, and which is fitting seeing as that Clare is one of the Haynes sisters and is tremendous throughout. The other sister is Danielle Hope, she has the most wonderful voice and who I last saw demonstrating her vocal prowess in concert at The Other Palace back in the summer. Clare and Danielle work well together as sisters with excellent dynamics between the two of them.

Danny Mac as Wallace and Dan Burton as Phil Davis wouldn’t seem out of place in the original movie. They have the looks, can sing the American songbook, and have dancing skills that make it look so effortless. Following on in the footsteps of Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye is an enormous undertaking, but they do the show justice – never more so than in the big energetic song-and-dance numbers previously mentioned. It’s on those occasions that the Dominion really comes alive and takes on a different dimension.

General Waverley is played by Michael Brandon. Again, showing my age here, Michael became particularly well-known in the UK as a result of the 80’s TV series Dempsey & Makepeace, of which I was a big fan. It was great to see him on stage, and this native New Yorker was perfect casting for the ageing (sorry Michael!) American General. Brenda Edwards was the crafty receptionist at the lodge charged with keeping both the lodge and the General under control. A former X Factor contestant from 2005, Brenda has a wonderful voice that when she lets rip, makes you immediately think of her standing up in church delivering a gospel classic. Which is ideal seeing as she’s appearing as Deloris in the Sister Act UK tour in 2020.

All of the cast were wonderful. Whether it was the singing, the dancing or the numerous comedic moments, there wasn’t one weak link. There is one other person that I would like to highlight though, and that is the General’s niece. This role is alternated across three children and for the Gala night it was Erin Rushidi. Erin was truly outstanding, particularly with the comic timing, and pretty much stole every scene that she was in. The audience loved her! She is a tremendous talent and definitely one to watch out for in the future.

As for the show itself, it gets off to a slightly slow start as the foundations of the story are built at the start of act one in the army days, but that quickly moves on and then the rest of the show pretty much flies by. Song after familiar song happens apace, and whilst you’re waiting in anticipation for ‘that’ final scene, you can’t help but revel in the visual feast in front of your eyes. There are some wonderful costumes, designed by Diego Pitarch.

This production follows the storyline very closely, and there were a number of times when I was getting quite emotional seeing elements of the movie come to life in front of my very eyes. Whilst the finale was always going to be a special moment, another highlight was when Bob Wallace and Betty Haynes sang ‘Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep’. Danny Mac and Danielle Hope performed this beautifully, and yes there may well have been a tear in my eye at the end of that song. So, to the finale itself, White Christmas. This was everything I wanted it to be. Yes, we all know what happens when the barn doors are opened, but it was fabulous to see this scene come to life and the snow begin to fall.

Director Nikolai Foster has done a brilliant job with this production. I suspect the majority of audience members will be familiar with the story and have seen the movie before (who hasn’t?!); well none of these should leave disappointed. Yes, some elements of the storyline and some of the jokes may seem dated in the 21^st century, but if you walk into the theatre putting all that aside, you will find yourself with a definite smile on your face, a chuckle here and there (well actually, quite a few chuckles!), and a propensity to want to sing along! And on that latter point, everyone gets the opportunity to do that at the end.

Even the most hardened of hearts cannot fail to be softened by what they see and hear in this production. Everyone will be leaving the theatre with a smile on their face, maybe a few tears in their eyes, and no doubt looking forward to seeing the movie on TV again this Christmas. For me, I’m seeing the show again over the Christmas period, and I can’t give a better recommendation than that!

White Christmas will be continuing to provide cheer during this festive season. Be sure to catch this winter warmer. More information on the show and tickets can be found here.

Eros – REVIEW

Eros

White Bear Theatre, London

Seen September 9th, 2018

Reviewed by Jade Prince

★★★1/2

The 1990s was a decade which welcomed in many things. The computer was one that had the biggest impact. Like anything, it had its pros and cons. It improved accessibility to the world, giving people the feeling of acceptance and a purpose when in reality the thoughts of these were a distance truth. But with this accessibility came the ability to exploit. The improvement of technology meant that camera were also improving and the time between capturing the image to viewing it in its printed form were drastically decreased. Sexploitation began to have an ever bigger presence.

The story follows the lives of Ross and Kate. Both stagnant in life. Ross unknowingly running from his past and Kate trying to find closure.

I want to say this show has depth however I don’t think this is possible. While the writing was enjoyable most of the time, there were times when the pace dropped. Complete scenes which never seemed to develop and left the audience asking more questions than they had before.

Focusing on pass behaviours eventually catching up with you despite how fast you run and the facade you create. Ross is a mellowing, middle-aged man doing exactly this. Escaping from his past which left a photographic imprint in his mind. A lifetime of guilt and regret. Until the past enters through his failing business’s door, a female ghost of those days, Kate.

I’m still rather unsure what Kate’s intentions were. This was not made clear. I believe this aspect of the play needed working on the most in order to allow the audience to make up their mind on how they felt about Kate. It was also a little ambiguous as to how Terri aided the story. Was she there to represent the naivety of the young?

The writing of the script was fairly good. As perviously mentioned, the majority of it had a good pace with some witty parts. Unfortunately, what let it down was how it seemed the need to acquire a couple of ‘cheap’ laughs. It heavily relied on the mention of well-known towns around the Staines and Twickenham area to make the audience laugh. Don’t get me wrong, it worked, however people will always smile/chuckle when something resonates with them in that context.

Overall, this was relatively enjoyable despite the flaws. It is clear it is in the early stages of its development and I will be interested in seeing where this goes in the future. Next time I hope the synopsis is a little more vague so the reveal of Ross’s past life is more of a shock.

Evita – REVIEW

Evita

Phoenix Theatre, London

 

Seen October 4th, 2017

Reviewed by Jade Prince

★★★

Those who have read my recent reviews will know that I have seen the shows at the later stages of their runs and this one is no different. Evita only has another week left in the West End but that does not mean you should forget about seeing it!

The iconic story of the rise of Eva Peron and how she became Argentina. From a middle class family, she worked her way up the ranks by winning the hearts of the people of Argentina. A touching true story told with music by the one and only Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice.

It was nice to be able to see the show again as the last time I had seen it was back in 2014 on its UK tour. I personally did not notice any drastic changes to the set or staging but then again, why change something if it is working well? They have managed to condense the set down in order to work with the smaller size of the Phoenix theatre however it is most certainly better suited on a larger stage. This helps to add to the grandeur in a handful of numbers.

The show itself was very enjoyable however really lacked the “wow” factor. I am not too sure whether this is because I have seen the show before (a very long time ago) or what it was but the spark was not there. The cast were very strong together however there were a few little things that I could not help but notice. The first being the lack of accents. Or should I say the amount of different accents they attempted to include. There was no set accent and at one point between Eva and Che in act one I thought it was about to move into Sweeney Todd! It is set in Argentina!

Another point which disappointed me was the fact that the child actor was, very noticeably, miming during “Santa Evita”. I found this a shame as there are some many talented kids in the west end. She was incredibly cute though and melted hearts so in a way that compensated.

Despite these two little down falls there were two things that stood out. Che (Gian Marco Schiaretti) was sensational. I could not take my eyes off of him for the whole show and vocally he was outstanding.

The other stand out moment happened where I least expected it – “Another Suitcase in Another Hall”. This is by far my favourite song of the whole show so ultimately I have high expectations and in my opinion the best performance was by Samantha Barks on ‘Andrew Lloyd Webber – 40 musical years’. Well, I was slightly wrong! Sarah O’Connor (Mistress) smashed it. Her vocals and acting were on point throughout and I was captivated. This was probably my favourite moment of the whole show.

Evita is a beautiful show which is well established. Each time you see it you know exactly what to expect and this version is no exception. It only has another week left at the Phoenix Theatre so be sure to get a ticket. Must end October 14^th. Tickets and more information: http://www.atgtickets.com/shows/evita/phoenix-theatre/