REVIEW: Strike Up The Band, Upstairs At The Gatehouse ✭✭
Julian Eaves reviews George and Ira Gershwins’ musical Strike Up The Band at Upstairs At The Gatehouse.
George Gershwin
REVIEW: Nice Work If You Can Get It, Upstairs At The Gatehouse ✭✭✭✭
Julian Eaves reviews Nice Work If You Can Get It by Joe DiPietro featuring the music of George and Ira Gershwin presented by Ovation Productions Upstairs at the Gatehouse.
Hidden Gershwin gem comes to Upstairs At The Gatehouse
Alces Productions are to present George and Ira Gershwin’s Strike Up The Band at Upstairs At The Gatehouse in March 2019.
An American In Paris – The Palace Theatre
Directed and choreographed by Tony Award winner Christopher Wheeldon, this incredible company of 25 international and Broadway viruosos bring the magic and romance of Paris into perfect harmony with Tony Award winning orchestrations of songs by the legendary George and Ira Gershwin. An American In Paris features songs including I’ll Build A Stairway To Paradise, I Got Rhythm and The Man I Love. The romantic story of a young American soldier, a beautiful French girl and an indomitable European city are at the heart of Broadway’s breathtakingly beautiful new musical, An American in Paris, the four-time Tony Award-winning production that also earned the awards for Best Musical of the Year from both the Outer Critics Circle and the Drama League. Read our review of An American In Paris
REVIEW: Of Thee I Sing, Royal Festival Hall ✭✭
The comic performance of the night, and the source of most consistent pleasure, came from the very talented Tom Edden who made an acting masterclass out of the portrayal of the reluctant Vice President, Alexander Throttlebottom (is there a character in a Broadway musical with a better name?). Taking his cue from that name, Edden presented a neurotic, chaotic, frantic but ambitious, character: he stole every scene he was in and even some he was not in. Superb.
REVIEW: A Damsel In Distress, Chichester Festival Theatre ✭✭✭✭✭
The cast, like a fine soufflé, is full of first rate choices and rises to the occasion in exactly the right way. The singing here is glorious. The Gershwins make a lot of demands upon singers and Williams ensures that every note is hit truly and that the froth and bubble in the music is given full release. The dance routines in Nice Work If You Can Get It, Stiff Upper Lip, I Can’t Be Bothered Now, French Pastry Walk and Fidgety Feet are effortlessly engaging, thrilling to watch. As you emerge from the auditorium, it is impossible not be cheery.
REVIEW: An American In Paris: Palace Theatre ✭✭✭✭
Christopher Wheeldon’s vision here, as director and choreographer, is remarkably detailed and endlessly lavish and ambitious. Without huge pre-built sets, Bob Crowley creates a never static vista of Parisian streets, monuments, parlours and performance venues. It all contributes to the cinematic feel of the dreamlike qualities which propel the production. Casting is faultless and this is probably the best looking, most innately stylish, cast of any Broadway show now playing. Robert Fairchild, in his Broadway debut, is revelatory as Jerry. Leanne Cope is a shimmering flower of elfin glory as Lise, and Max von Essen triumphs as Henri in a cleverly judged, gloriously sung, pitch perfect performance.
