42nd Street (2019) -
Despite finding numerous flaws in this production I still came away from it feeling that I'd enjoyed myself. There was no denying that the show was upbeat, but I did find that it took a long time to get going with any real sort of narrative. The musical numbers, while largely enjoyable didn't seem to be following any structure and even as they took their bows I was still at a loss as to what the show within a show, "Pretty Lady" was actually supposed to be about.
As such the songs were all a bit disjointed and not necessarily about anything in particular, although the big numbers were visually spectacular.
I wasn't sure if it was because it was so brassy, so fast and so loud, but it felt really obvious that the performers were all British putting on American accents too.
Their vocal ranges all seemed to be tenor and soprano which made it all feel like the buzzing of flies or bees, all on the same level and pitch which was sometimes hard to listen to, and it was a struggle to follow everything they said or sang because of the speed that it was delivered. I wondered if the conductor kicked the tempo up a notch because he was in a hurry to get to the bar afterwards to see the friends he had in that night?
The dancing however was insanely good and I was very jealous of even the smallest player for their stupendous ability. I could only dream of dancing like that.
It never appeared to calm down so I felt that it could have used some moments of lightness to balance that out. My sad little tap shoes have been relegated to the loft for many years and didn't get much of an outing even before then.
I also thought that the whole cast were all a bit plastic and fake. And I don't just mean the fact that they were obviously acting up for stage, but none of them had shabbier outfits to signify that they were poor actors/dancers for instance and there was very little indication of that via props or the sets either. Also because of a lack of pauses or quiet moments it was hard to see the heart of the characters. They were always "On" so I never really got to know what they were thinking and therefore had very little chance to associate with them very much.
As for the main cast, Bonnie Langford in the role of Dorothy had a cracking pair of lungs to deliver her songs and stood out for being too much, but in a calmer more controlled and deliberate way than the other shrill girls AND she had a fantastic wardrobe.
The character of Peggy played by Clare Halse unfortunately didn't stand out among the rest of the girls, except for being a little bit short and stocky, not the typical dancer or iconic leading lady shape that the role required. As a result she appeared to be so generic that during one of the numbers, where Peg was still a chorus girl, it was hard to tell which one was her. Some of the others were far more defined and easier to identify.
She also came across as rushed and more like 'Calamity Jane' than one of Ziegfeld's follies. Despite the effort that she clearly put in to each number she just didn't deliver the performance of a stage star that was supposed to be better than Bonnie's Dorothy. I still thought that she was an eager and new chorus girl right until the end of the show.
The mirror effect in "Keep Young And Beautiful" was good, but Billy's (Philip Bertioli) singing voice wasn't strong enough in it to compete with the band. He was fairly effortless otherwise though, if a bit brash and full of himself, but I felt that most of that was the character. The confident ones really are those that get noticed and succeed.
Producer Maggie's (Jasna Ivir) accent came and went, which was tough to ignore at the start, but at least she could deliver the boldness of her character well and had a good singing voice, because her partner Bert's (Christopher Howell) performance was highly questionable. He was surely the weakest link in the whole thing and his inclusion in the "Wedding Number" felt inappropriate and only done to flesh out his characters part.
In the end I thought that the pleasure I came away with had been mostly due to Tom Lister in his role of Julian Marsh, "Pretty Lady's" Director and the one I felt was the most understandable character. I understood his motives at least.
I hadn't imagined that I would enjoy his performance, because he was one of the shouty ones initially, but although his character was as fickle as a pickle he was at least talented and fit his role well. After his rendition of 'Lullaby Of Broadway' I was actually quite attracted to him partly because, for me, he had the best voice in the cast along with Bonnie. He definitely grew in to his part and won me over in the end.
The story, while not really an A to B kind of journey was simplistic and easy at least and all the way through I couldn't tell if Peggy was supposed to get together with Julian, Billy or Dorothy's lover Pat (Matthew Goodgame) which in the end I realised was probably deliberate, but earlier on it somehow appeared unplanned, as if the director wasn't really sure whether they wanted to muddy the waters of the stories leading romance or give too much away. Either way I would have liked it to have been a bit more obvious that there were attractions at all and I certainly wanted a more definitive resolution to it all than the finale gave me, although that would probably be the fault of the writer not the specific production.
It really did finish with a super powered number for the encore though leaving the audience on a high.
My only other notes were that the set in general was good, because the various tricks and mechanics used really were outstanding, and also that the ensemble were spot on with their timings and synchronicity, which made the dances quite mesmerising.
I'm not sure that I'd rush back to watch it again soon, but I will look out for things starring Tom Lister and I have a new appreciation for Bonnie as well as a new and revived desire to find some Tap Dancing lessons.
531.44/1000.
