Showboat, Sheffield Crucible 19/12/15

It's Christmas and that only means one thing in my theatre obsessed mind, no not panto , but a festive trip over to Sheffield to see what Christmas musical delights are on offer. This year the Crucible are staging Showboat by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II, a show first staged in 1927 and quite controversial at the time, combining the more traditional romantic stories with darker themes including racial identity and injustice.

This production doesn't shy away from the tougher themes, in fact it highlights the racial divisions through a powerful piece of staging in the very opening of the performance and its treatment of the more serious elements of this epic tale remain impactful and relevant throughout. It is maybe more of a considered, serious musical than many of the Crucible's recent festive offerings, as the tale unfolds it is tender, heart wrenching at times and full of impact, but there are a few out and out foot stompers that allow the cast to make full use of the crucible's generous stage.

As always an incredibly talented cast has been assembled for the show who work together with such fluidity that even scene changes are a thing of beauty. With such immense talent on display it seems churlish to pick favourites but I will! Emmanuel Kojo and Jason Denton as Joe and Stevedore were fantastic and their rendition of Old Man River will stay with me for a very long time. Michael Xavier portrayed the complexities of Gaylord Ravenal's journey finely and has a powerful but unforced voice and Sandra Marvin as Queenie has a beautiful voice and gave an incredibly engaging performance.

The design is first class,from the sumptuous costumes, gorgeous lighting to amazing set design, it's what we have come to expect from the Crucible but no less delightful for that. The initial set reveal is simply breathtaking, plain wooden panels line the rear of the stage when we arrive which seem to magically disappear as the show gets under way to reveal the most gorgeously detailed steamboat deck with action able to play across three levels vertically as well as over the large thrust stage of the space. When the boat is not present in the Chicago scenes the wooden backdrop allows for extremely effective use of back projection, which as well as providing set detail, is used to great effect in transition scenes and is especially effective in detailing the passage of time and some of the major headlines associated with it, giving a nice historical context to the events portrayed. 

Director Daniel Evans is moving on from the Artistic Director role at Sheffield in mid 2016 to the celebrated Chichester Festival Theatre so this will be his last Christmas production for them, he has left quite a legacy in his five years with them, and what a musical to end his Sheffield Christmas career on. Although I did see in the programme that he will be directing a brand new musical there before he leaves so I will have to see about getting over for that. The bar has been set high for next year's Christmas delight! 

The Crucible, Royal Exchange Theatre 3/10/15

"This performance lasts three hours and ten minutes with one twenty minute interval" -  Words to strike fear into the heart of any theatregoer who has experienced the joy of an more arduous production. Picture if you will the scenes of chaos when the Royal Exchange decided to crash together Acts One and Two of Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolfe into a single over two hour ' first act' . Slower moving theatre goers were trampled in the sprint for the toilets when the interval was declared. Then of course there is added danger of jaw dislocation as you try to stifle the yawns in a production that the directors really should have edited. Thankfully, neither of these theatrical perils were realised in the Exchange's latest production, Arthur Miller's The Crucible, thanks in a large part to the talented cast who hold your attention throughout.

Somehow, I've managed to reach my advanced age without ever having seen a production of The Crucible on stage or screen, despite it being one of Miller's most widely performed plays. I was, of course, aware of its subject matter, the Salem witch trials, and watching it performed, it was easy to draw comparisons with many more modern references, the most obvious being the McCarthy era in the U.S. But the mass hysteria, bandwagon jumping and a refusal to recognise the facts over the panic mongering portrayed is played out time and time again today.

Perhaps as a nod to the modern reflections, the male characters in this production wore present day dress, but this contrasted weirdly in the decision to dress female characters in a kind of repressed Amish like manner. There was probably a very deep meaning to this but it was lost on me. Also lost on me was the design choice to flood the stark and effective  stage set towards the end of the production. It was cleverly done and looked impressive but I didn't entirely see the point.

As mentioned, the cast gave impressive performances, in particular the central characters of John and Elizabeth Proctor, Jonjo O'Neill and Matti Houghton clearly gave their all to the parts. And Rachel Redford gave a delightfully manipulative and hard faced portrayal of the central accuser Abigail.

All in all, despite not totally buying in to the design decisions, I did enjoy this production, it felt powerful and relevant, and the cast was superb. The initially dread inducing running time was justified and I was engaged throughout by the performances and the play itself which, despite its 17th century setting, has powerful messages for a modern era.

Anything Goes, Sheffield Crucible 13/12/14

It's become a bit of a tradition for me to travel over to Sheffield to take in their Christmas musical offering. Call it a Christmas present to me from me! It always delivers a memorable festive treat, and this year's offering of the Cole Porter musical Anything Goes doesn't disappoint.

The first thing that must be mentioned is the fabulously creative set design from Richard Kent, all 1920's glamour, with an inventive and stunning recreation of the ship's deck folded at right angles, which is used to great effect by the cast throughout with its multiple entrances, multilevel performance spaces and even a tiled swimming pool, it really has to be seen to be believed. I was seated quite close to the stage for this production and the detail was amazing. The lighting and costumes are equally sumptuous making this a real visual treat. Add in an excellent orchestra and you have all the basics for a great Christmas package.

As I have come to expect from director Daniel Evans Christmas productions, there are some breath-taking ensemble numbers, including the first outing of Anything Goes that rounds off Act One and created a massive audience buzz in the interval, and the energetic rabble rouser Blow Gabriel Blow which ramps up the energy again in Act Two. At the centre of both of these, and many other highlights, is Debbie Kurup as Reno Sweeney, an amazingly talented all-rounder who lights up the stage (and boy can she get her legs high!)

Another scene stealing performance comes from Stephen Matthews as Lord Evelyn Oakleigh in Act Two as he finds his inner gypsy in quite dazzling style! Zoe Rainey and Matt Rawle as the lovers Hope and Billy make a nice pairing, both in the comedy moments and the more romantic interludes. The rest of the cast (which is huge!) whilst too many to list, are all brilliant, working incredibly hard to deliver such an energetic, slick and enjoyable production.

If I'm completely honest and very picky, this didn't blow me away quite as much as some of the musical productions I have seen at the Crucible, but I think that is the fault of the story rather than anything else, it is quite weak, especially in the first act, and really serves as an excuse to bring together some wonderful songs and show stopping production numbers.

Notwithstanding that minor quibble, I once again had a wonderful Christmas trip over to Sheffield, left feeling all joyful and festive, and was still humming the songs and wishing I could tap dance long after I had travelled back across the 'border' to my home. Well done all, it really was 'delightful and de-lovely' and I definitely 'got a kick out you'

Oliver, Sheffield Crucible 14/12/13

Sheffield Crucible have set themselves a high standard over the last few years with their Christmas musical offerings. There was the wonderful ‘Company’ in 2011, the breathtaking ‘My Fair Lady’ in 2012, and this year they have chosen the Lionel Bart Classic ‘Oliver’ for our entertainment and it certainly doesn't disappoint.
There was a deserved packed house when I visited, noticeably a lot more children in the audience than I have seen before, it's probably a welcome break from the standard panto outing for parents, and a well known and well loved musical for almost all ages. The combination of matinee audiences, excitable kids on sugar highs who knew people in the youth cast, and continual biscuit, sweet and crisp chomping surrounding me did make for a slightly distracting experience initially, but the spectacle on stage soon won out, and it's probably the one time I have actually been grateful for slightly over generous sound levels!

The stage and costume design is amazing. From the dark depressing workhouse, to the bright chaos of Fagin’s den, the stage is cleverly and seamlessly transformed before your eyes. And the costumes were beautiful, sumptuous deep colours blending with the muted tones of the streets, the drabness of the poorhouse contrasting with the the crisp bright colours of the more upmarket streets.
An excellent cast deliver a clever, fast paced and exuberant performance which includes some brilliant ensemble pieces, the act one finisher "Be Back Soon" and act two opener " Oom Pah Pah " being particular favourites for me.  Whilst the production has all the joy and humour you would expect, it doesn't shy away from the darker themes in the text, the hypocrisy of the moneyed classes when 'helping' the poor, the harshness of life and reliance on gin to take the edge off the hunger, the brutality of Bill Sykes and the tragic conflict of Nancy's life.
A mention should go to the excellent young performers who portrayed Oliver, Dodger, the workhouse children and Fagin’s gang (on my visit Jack Skilbeck-Dunn, Jack Armstrong and Blue team) They were just brilliant, very professional, sparkling performances, some lovely detail. They've clearly worked very hard and there are definitely some stars of the future in that lot.

The stand out performance for me in this production was Hayley Gallivan as Nancy. An astonishingly powerful voice, combined with terrific acting which really portrayed the complexities of her character. Her performance of 'As Long As He Needs Me' was simply stunning and heartbreaking.
So yes, Crucible Theatre, once again you have provided the perfect Christmas treat and made me glad I made the effort of a trip across from my usual stomping ground to see you. I'm pretty sure I'll 'be back soon'.

My Fair Lady, Sheffield Crucible, 29/12/12

A trip over to Sheffield to see their Christmas offering at the Crucible appears to be my new Christmas tradition. Last year it was the wonderful Company, and this year I managed to snaffle one of the few remaining seats for a matinee performance of My Fair Lady (note to self – book early for 2013!), which was equally special and an excellent way to round off the festive season.

As I entered the auditorium the hard working cast were already on stage conjuring up the atmosphere of Covent Garden market. There was hustle and bustle, life and laughter, and I could tell I was going to be in for a treat. Obviously the story, and the musical, are well known, although like many people I know it solely through the film version with Audrey Hepburn and Rex Harrison. But seeing it on the stage, with such an excellent cast, gorgeous design and exuberant choreography really brought new life to it.

Dominic West is perfectly cast as the cantankerous and condescending Professor Higgins, exasperating to the extreme, but I can definitely see why Eliza fell for him! He’s got amazing stage presence and a wonderfully powerful voice, and gives a cleverly judged performance that gives rise to some lovely comic moments but is never overplayed. I have seen him once before on stage, doing Shakespeare at the Wyndhams (where he quite literally fell at my feet as he tumbled off the stage into the front row – scripted I think, but certainly one of my most memorable audience experiences!), so I knew he was a great classical actor, but it seems there is no end to his talents.

Carly Bawden, as Eliza Doolittle, was a perfect partnering to West. She gave an outstanding performance – feisty yet vulnerable and you completely believed the relationship between the two of them. Her singing voice is simply stunning, so amazingly powerful and with such range she takes your breath away.

The ensemble cast work brilliantly together, and there are as you’d expect some great song and dance numbers with fabulous and extremely energetic choreography, ‘Get Me to the Church on Time’ being a particular highlight. The design of the show is gorgeous, a clever revolve allows seamless changes between the various scenes and the set is beautiful and filled with detail. As you’d expect the costumes, particularly in the Ball scene and Ascot are divine, and the direction makes great use of the space, ensuring there is no such thing as a bad seat for the audience.

The performance gained a well-deserved ovation and there were lots of smiling faces as I left the auditorium and floated back to the station quietly singing! A fabulous production on every level. Who needs the West End when we have talent like this in the North!

Company - Sheffield Crucible 17/12/11

Well I certainly ended my 2011 theatregoing experience on a high, with an impromptu trip to Sheffield to see one of my favourite Sondheim musicals, Company, at the Crucible Theatre.

There really wasn't anything I could fault about this production, it was just a delight from start to finish. They had brought together an incredibly strong cast, it was brilliantly staged, had a wonderful set that allowed a great use of the space, and it was both funny in parts, and incredibly moving.

I loved Francesca Annis' portrayal of Joanne, and her drunken rant of 'Ladies Who Lunch' was just a delight. Samantha Spiro made a brilliant Amy and her 'Not Getting Married' was quite literally breathtaking (how any actress gets through that song without turning blue is beyond me!), and Damian Humbley as Harry has a voice that could melt Sheffield steel! But all the cast were just a delight.

Daniel Evans' portrayal of Bobby was wonderfully observed. Initially you see him as quite a shallow character, but there was a really clear point in the production, during the bouncy 'Side by Side / What Would We Do Without You' where you saw the depth and complexity of his emotions laid bare and your heart went out to him.

By the closing number 'Being Alive' I had a tear in my eye, party because of the emotion of the song, and partly because I just didn't want the show to end. I make no apologies for gushing, it was a gush worthy production and a great way to round off the year.

And on a side note, I don't know why I haven't been to Sheffield for theatrical jaunts before. Its incredibly easy to get to on the train, Sheffield itself seemed lovely (in complete contrast to the impressions I got on my last visit to the city for a uni interview quite a few years ago - actually when I realised how many years ago it was I felt ancient!), the Crucible staff are some of the most helpful and friendly I have come across and the ticket prices were amazingly good value. Looking at their exciting 2012 plans I suspect I'll be back!

Hope you like the festive picture - I can't tell you how long it took me to balance the programme on that tree!