Stop Search - Broadway Theatre, Catford

The first of Dominic J Taylor’s plays to be produced, Stop Search addresses the use and abuse of stop and search powers executed by the police against predominantly young black males. Drawing on Taylor’s own experience in the justice system as well as contributions from parents and young people affected by this practice, the play examines the strain put on the police and communities when targets and racial profiling are made a higher priority than positive relations.

The piece centres on two families whose lives are intertwined when thirteen year old Callie Adeyemi goes missing after going out to buy sweets. In trying to find their missing son, Ivan (Valentine Hanson) and Dianne (Renee Castle) make a number of shocking discoveries about his life, partly from his fifteen year old sister Allana (Jelissa Campbell) but also from the discovery of no fewer than thirty-six stop and search forms that Callie has amassed in a shoebox. Fearing their son must be involved in criminal behaviour, the parents reach out to the local police including Mick (Ray Macallan), a senior officer they coincidentally met on the very night of Callie’s disappearance.

There are some fantastic moments in Stop Search, with the pressures felt by young officers (including Mick’s son, Greg) and the socially damaging effects of young black boys being criminalised deftly highlighted. Initially there is a little too much exposition and some overlong scenes, but the intensity and drama builds and the scene where the stop search forms were discovered was one of the play’s best. Unfortunately in the latter part it felt as if the writer lost confidence that the issues were clear enough and began explaining events rather than trusting the drama to unfold which was a pity as much of the tension was then lost. This was not helped by some questionable staging and unfocussed direction.

The majority of the cast gave strong, nuanced performances throughout; with Hanson, Castle and Macallan impressing at every turn. Jerome Holder was particularly noteworthy as Callie, effortlessly capturing the mischievous youngster worn down by repeated persecution and humiliation at the hands of over-zealous officers. Jack Shalloo’s Greg is likeable and sympathetic as an inexperienced officer struggling in his father’s shadow, and Campbell’s Allana is both amusing and moving in equal measure.

On the whole this play informed and intrigued, but would definitely benefit from further development and stronger direction so that it can realise it’s potential and become the really important piece that it deserves to be.

The Book of Mormon

The best thing about the new musical The Book of Mormon is that it is at the same time shocking and familiar. It is difficult to think of another instance where a musical so blatantly laughs in the face of religion—a topic best avoided in any social setting—and holds nothing back in terms of profanity and sexual humor. Yet even so, The Book of Mormon, while setting these precedents, is a beautifully constructed Broadway musical in a very traditional sense.

Written by South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the duo has made very public over the years their reverence of musical theater. Collaborating with Robert Lopez, co-writer of the Tony-winning Avenue Q, this musical-loving team has done the medium justice. With a story that follows two young Mormon missionaries to Uganda to spread the word of their faith, character traits and ambitions are established immediately and simply. Elder Price (Andrew Rannells) is a handsome, perfect Mormon disciple, determined to rise the ranks in the Church of Latter-Day Saints. Elder Cunningham (Josh Gad) is a goofy, clueless loudmouth who just wants to make a friend and prove his worth to his parents. Audience, we have our newest Broadway odd couple!

Parker, Stone, and Lopez (who, from the sound of it, could open up a law firm if this endeavor fails), present their two heroes and their fellow Mormons as relentlessly cheery drones who have no idea what they’re talking about when it comes to the logistics of their faith. It doesn’t matter how you or I perceive the Mormon community; this is the version that Parker, Stone, and Lopez have created for their show, and as a set of characters in a musical work of fiction, they are built on fantastic character devices. Elder Price, while presenting himself as selfless and good intentioned, possesses a dark, narcissistic desire for self advancement. Elder Cunningham, while appearing ignorantly blithe, struggles with a seed of doubt that grows stronger as the show progresses. And the missionary leader in Uganda, Elder McKinley (Rory O’Malley) surprises his homosexual urges so decidedly that he “turns it off like a light switch.” (Yeah, right!)

Elder McKinley’s simplistic instructions for suppressing “sinful” desires is among the best of the show’s fantastic musical numbers. “Turn It Off” gets the entire Mormon mission together, each singing about burying his own unpleasant temptation without the struggle of truly facing it. Each elder presents his own issue (each becoming more hilarious) and flippantly casts it off as solved. Grief over the death of a loved one? Turn it off like a light switch!

While Lopez’s lyrics were genius in Avenue Q, his melodies lacked hook. His collaboration with Parker and Stone have filled that gap. The opening number, “Hello,” has a bouncy rhythm, and excellently staged by co-directors Casey Nicholaw and Parker, serves as a superb kickoff to the show. Another of the show’s best musical offerings is “You And Me (But Mostly Me),” Elder Price’s showcase of great ambition and also intense ego. With a dramatic, sweeping melody, the song and it’s subject matter seemed like a hilarious sendup to Stephen Schwartz’s “The Wizard and I” from Wicked.

Adding to that song is Rannells’ fantastic performance. Strikingly good looking, he portrays Elder Price as an all-American Mormon who probably fancies himself as the next coming of Joseph Smith, the founder of the Church of Latter-Day Saints. His Elder Price is good intentioned, but sinisterly pompous. He wants things to be perfect, and when his assigned mission location turns out to be Uganda, rather than his ideal placement of Orlando, Florida, his reaction is nothing short of hilarious.

Gad is the perfect counterpart to a performer like Rannells. Gad is an actor who uses every bit of his characterized physicality (overweight, curly black hair, wide mouth) and plays those traits like a grand piano. His large, rubbery facial expressions and big eyes are able to convey the giddiness of a 12-year-old at Disney World. Gad is able to manipulate his voice into an irritating rasp and project it throughout the theater (I say manipulate, because Gad actually has a beautiful singing voice).

As Elder Price and Elder Cunningham, these Mormon misfits show tremendous growth over the course of the show, and that is what makes Book of Mormon worth while. They arrive—not in Orlando—but in a poverty and violence-stricken land where faith is nowhere to be found and a frightening general mutilates women. When given the seemingly impossible task of making the villagers believe in something, Elder Price and Elder Cunningham break out of their respective character constraints and perform a miracle.

For those that see Book of Mormon (or judge from afar) and view it as a defamation of religion, consider otherwise. For being such a brash, expletive-ridden piece, Book of Mormon offers a very sweet position on faith, that no matter what one believes in, it is important to believe in something.

While boasting incredibly tight production numbers and solid writing, Book of Mormon shows signs of weakness in the development of its supporting characters. O’Malley, who is a superb showcase of flamboyance and insanity as Elder McKinley, could have used more integration into the main plot. Nikki M. James is touching as the gullible and sincere Nabulungi, but the character’s writing remains two dimensional. Nabulungi’s father Mafala Hatimbi (Michael Potts) is introduced and then underused. While the two heroes are excellently developed and understood by the audience, we don’t know nearly as much about the community they become a part of—which is equally as important to this story.

Broadway is a risky business, especially these days. I respect shows that take risks, but do so intelligently. Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark took risks without thinking about them; The Book of Mormondid it with calculated, well-planned moves. Let’s give the smart guys the credit; these Mormons aren’t as dumb as they look.

Little Shop of Horrors

Menier Chocolate Factory Production, currently on a UK tour

Glasgow, King’s Theatre: Monday 6^th April – Saturday 11^th April 2009
Sunderland, Empire Theatre: Monday 13^th April – Saturday 18^th April 2009
Nottingham, Theatre Royal: Monday 20^th April – Saturday 25^th April 2009
Manchester, Opera House: Monday 27^th April – Saturday 2^nd May 2009
Liverpool, Empire Theatre: Monday 4^th May – Saturday 9^th May 2009
Milton Keynes Theatre: Monday 11^th May – Saturday 16^th May 2009
Woking, New Victoria Theatre: Monday 18^th May – Saturday 23^rd May 2009

Theatres across the land are currently being taken over by the flesh eating plant, Audrey II, in the very successful Menier Chocolate Factory’s production of Little Shop of Horrors, now on tour. The musical is traditionally performed in intimate spaces, but has been scaled-up to be performed in larger theatre venues in this current tour. In Little Shop of Horrors’ history small scale productions have a tendency to be better received, as a lot of the humour, terror and character approachability can be lost in large theatre spaces. Unfortunately, the same comment can be applied to this production. However there is no denying that Menier Chocolate Factory’s reincarnation is slickly paced and performed with great style, consequently Seymour and Audrey’s sentimental love story can still be enthralling and entertaining.

Damian Humbley and Clare Buckfield take on the roles of Seymour and Audrey, humble and naive characters that briefly find comfort and love in each other before being eaten. The reality presented in Skid Road, where everyone is in danger of being eaten, may be far from our own, yet Seymour’s downfall because of his ambition and the plant’s influence has connotations of tragic theatrical tradition. The sadistic dentist is played by Alex Ferns in this production, a part he appears to revel in and shines as he entertain the, more than eager, audience.

Overall, and quiet rightly so, the star of the musical is the plant. Mike McShane’s voice booms through the auditorium, allowing for Audrey II to be both humorous and terrifying, assisted by the impressive puppetry techniques. Perhaps this productions is not quiet the best the musical can be, ultimately due to the venues that this production is touring to, yet this musical is created with great loyalty to the lovable story.

Blue Surge | Cobweb Theatre Company | Adam House, Edinburgh

Following Life of Insects (see review below) in Cobweb Theatre Company’s double bill is Rebecca Gilman’s Blue Surge, a play about two cops and their assignment to close down a known prostitution business, masquerading as a massage parlour. On the surface, Cobweb Theatre Company’s two plays are very different in style and content; however the two are inherently linked by their examination of class and gender roles, and hence balance each other well. Yet, by comparison, John Lake’s production contains a small cast of five and the production’s particular strengths lie in the individual dramatic moments.

Andrew Henry portrays the character of Curt, a cop that takes it upon himself to try to help Sandy, played by Frankie Bradley, a young woman working in the “Naughty but Nice” massage parlour. Some of the most intimate and poignant moments in the performance happen between Henry and Bradley, as their characters begin to connect. The principal theme of the gap between classes is shown effectively through Henry’s character and his relationship with his wealthy fiancée, played by Laura Brough. Lake’s production focuses on the themes in Gilman’s script, unfortunately resulting in the story telling arch being lost a little along the way. The constant blackout interruptions slowed down the action and were, at times, clumsy. Nevertheless, the production contains both tragic and comic moments, particularly the exchanges between Jamie Laing’s character, Doug, and Emma Hay’s Heather.

On the whole, the production succeeds in its intentions and new layers are successfully added by the cast, though some confusion results by the attempt to set the action in Scotland. The Chicagoan play has language and social conditions connected to its setting, which were not fully separated for this production. However, this small detail did not take away too much from the overall quality.

Oliver

Cameron Mackintosh Presentation, Royal Theatre Drury Lane, London
Friday 12^th December 2008 – currently booking to Saturday 18^th July 2009

The creators of the reality television show I’ll Do Anything were very clever; reminding the UK population how much they love the Lionel Bart’s musical Oliver!and subsequently attracting an audience that is not necessarily the theatre-going type. They then suitably catered for their audience with a sleek, constantly changing, fast paced, television-like production, complete with their new favourite reality stars and other famous television faces. The creators’ cleverness has, undeniably, paid off, with record breaking sales and regular full houses in the large Royal Theatre Drury Lane. The audience certainly do lap up what they are served, yet, this reviewer wonders if Cameron Mackintosh’s newest production of Oliver! is anything new or if it is really needed.

The quality of the set and staging cannot be denied, as the whole performance is beautifully crafted on the vast theatre space. The cast boasts over eighty performers and the sequences involving all of these performers are truly epic. The children performers are directed flawlessly and seem perfectly aware of their likeability. I’ll Do Anything winner, Jodie Prenger, portrays a typical Nancy, which is a very honest presentation of the character. Prenger, undeniably, commands the stage in the energetic “Oom-Pah-Pah” opening to the second act and is well received, through the entire performance, by the audience. Likewise, Rowan Atkinson’s Fagin is well pitched for the audience and is mostly played for comic purposes, although, it could be argued, his performance went against the character’s sinister nature in Dickens’ book.

The lack of devoted, theatrical, Dickensian style is the productions main drawback. The colourful London is far from other darker presentations of Dickens’ works and this flaw is assisted by the light, contagious music. Overall, the musical is at home in the Royal Theatre Drury Lane and is much adored by the audience, although lacking the Dickensian grit.

A Brilliant 'Miss Julie' by August Strindberg at The Old Red Lion Theatre

August Strindberg's intricate and naturalistic one-act play, with just three central characters, explores themes of class, love, lust, the battle of the sexes, and the interaction among them. When first produced Miss Julie pioneered a new genre of theatre, Naturalism, which moved beyond the melodramatic dramas of the period and focused on realism and everyday life.

Dirty Boots Theatre Company opens its second season with a new adaptation of Miss Julie. Director Billie Wilson, has devised a stunning new version of Miss Julie, setting the play in the 1920s in Miss Julie’s father’s kitchen in his mansion the night before Ash Wednesday. This 90-minute one-act play grows from a spark to a raging wildfire scorching and consuming us to its unsettling climax and out of the theatre into the autumn night where we continue to ponder the brilliance of this masterful classic.

Billie Wilson’s direction here could not be more detailed, succinct, and stunning. Her casting is phenomenal.

Christine (Felicity Downs), is devastated but maintained by her religious faith when she finds out her fiance, Jean, the valet of the house, has consummated his love for Miss Julie. Sarah Owen as Miss Julie skillfully evokes the many moods and discrepancies of her character’s psyche. Ms. Owen does some of the finest work of her career thus far as she navigates the tangled web of Julie’s skewed life. Robin Seymour, a most accomplished actor, fills Jean with all of the delicious details and conspicuous qualities that remind us what great acting is all about— his complete immersion into the part makes his Jean as real and natural as the day Strindberg wrote him. A huge “Bravo!” to the entire cast for brilliantly creating truly riveting and unforgettable characters.

Lighting design by Conner Flory is naturalistic and sets the right mood.

Costume design by Dora McCoy brilliantly differentiates Miss Julie’s flapper attire from Jean’s valet attire and the cook’s clothing.

Sound design by Brad Morgan brilliantly captures a Mardi Gras celebration that is happening in the background in real time, filled with lively music, chattering, and gossiping.

Get your tickets early to this stunningly brilliant new version of Miss Julie, which runs through May 23rd