The World of Musical Theatre from the West End to Broadway and beyond MUSICALS Reto etter Seta) 4 Marisha Wallace on Ree chi we et oe 13 to Do The Dreamgirls and WY fe oF oer old) eM ah att i 3 redefining Musical Theatre peor u ha a /The Dees) The lasting legacy of Stephen Sondheim Elaine Paige Cy a Musical TheatreLONDON’S PUT oe yi eee SBN A . Les Misérables 5 € fe Tee ee eee SE WEBSITES FOR BEST SEATS AND PAY NO BOOKING FEESMUSICALS an atic ee Sista | simran oo the nh he aratingaatanexcarastir | of Musicals, the exciting new magazine celebrating the world of Musical Theatre from the West End to Broadway and beyond, Whether you'te new to Musial “Theatre, an aficionado, or somewhere in between, this magazine is for you ‘My own Musial Theatre journey began when Iwas cight years old and my parents took me to see Starlight Expressat the Apollo Victoria, now home to Wicked. [as blown away ~ and not just because ofthe skating and the post-show McDonalds (my first ever). The sheer energy and spectacle ofthe show, its uplifing narrative the humour ~ owing greatly to Richard Stilgoes genius ries ~ and ofcourse Andrew Lloyd ‘Webber futuristic (atthe time) score... All these elements combined into something exhilarating, captivating and profoundly moving, la been bitten by the Musical Theatre bug and I couldnt get enough. At university I played in the pit for West Side Story, ‘which began an infatuation with Beenstins musical that remain to this day: Spielberg’ 2021 film had alot olive up to but, ike Matt Wolf (se his fascinating feature on movie musicals on page 40) I wasat disappointed Being a mum toa Musical Theatre- “obsessed teenage son has only broadened nny tastes when it comes to shows: Dear Fvan Hansen and & Juliet were both hits imour household (see our interviews with Sam Tatty and Miriam-Teak ‘on pages 8 and 20 respectively), and I'm now more aware ofthe Importance of new Musical Theatre ‘writing (see our feature on page 50), much of which finds an outlet through organisations such as British Youth Music Theatre. If “Musical Theatre is to evolve for (MA Musi Lesure & Travel <= D> 2 ~ z Oo 3 Qrrecycle Monge pte ce This issue’s contributors Tim Bano, joint hel teste erie for The Stage, Mark Brown, contributor the Dati Telegraph ane Scots newspaper the Sunday Nationa, avon Carr, West Endl Brosdway compose ovcestator and accompanist Tum Connor theatre amposer and ics Ruth Delle, Reader in Media and Communiciion a Sheela Halla Unversity Adrian Edvard, relance weterproducer and ‘Gramophone eft; Matthew Hem Irelaace writer and award win deputy eltr of The Stat Laura Lat, ‘hot story author Cheri Marko London based ats journalist and theatre ere Marina Sain ‘ites about theatre, da, li, ‘TY.books and morefor publications sch aT Tlegrphy The Paper Sn London Theat fn ation to ier role as subset or Masel, forthis launch nse she has Conteibted seer ive show ‘eviews (sce he scton starting on Formerly Chief Classical Music Citic of The Independent, Musteale magazine’ ‘editorial consultant award Seckerson isa writer, broadcaster, podeaster and Musical Theatre observe You cn ead his calm on rien the lass Sn page I, his intervie with our fxtteorinary cover sar Marsha ‘Wallace om page 22 an is ees inthe reconings section which arts on page the ection starting on page 80) MtcabMogocinncom Whether you're new to Musical’ jonado, or somewhere 99 in between, this magazine is for you Matt Wot spent 13 years London these x for Vane. His uidanceon ths launch ae has cn invaluable You ca ead hs roadway Bulletin on page 3, his ‘movie sia feature on page 40 Ind his Eine Paigetmervow on 56) and recording reviews (eee page 8, he also contributes to or Fre show and cording reviews: Pheatr future generations, ithas a esponsibility to reflect ‘whats happening in real if, from current topics to diverse representation ~ both on and off tage ‘Which brings me to the unstoppable Marsha Wallace (see page 22), who, having grown up with few role models to aspire to, has smashed through barriers to redefine what Musical Theatre inthe 2ist century looks ike, In Daniel Fish cutting-edge Oklahoma, Wallace’ Ado Annie was a revelation As far removed from the 1955 film versions character as one could {Amagine, her Annie was feisty, gobby, unapologetic and so damn sexy I couldnt take my eyes off her. Maybe there'll bea cast recording soon ~ heres hoping ‘Speaking of which, we have a comprehensive reviews section for you to enjoy, comprising original cast recordings ~ lke the fantastic SIX from Broadway and Christopher Wheeldoris MJ, currently taking New York by storm ~ and also compilation albums fom the likes ‘of TV’ John Barrowman and Joe Stilgoe (yes, Richards son, who also writes ‘Behind the Song, ‘see page 15). We've also inchuded a vast live show reviews section, giving you a taste of the exciting new musicals being performed in the UK, on Broadway and internationally. Wei love to hear your thoughts on our launch issue. On page 20, youl find details of our reader survey along with how to win ‘par of tickets to Les Misérables, Plus, ‘with Musicals continuing bi-monthly from April 2023, see page 21 forhow tosubscribe, Thank you so much for your support! sarah.kirkup@ markallengroup.com freclance journalist ang regular contiboor to Broadway ora Sam Marlowe Tack Pepper composer, broascaser and writer: oe Sloe acclaimed singer Danis and ongwatr Glens Sum, acting managing etor of NOW Magazine, Toronte’s newsentrtainment wecki fim Memon, teste and dance reviewer fot Tim Weight rele theatre and Brought up in New Former arts eitor YoreSng ned of Ober, aisle London David Benedict theatre cit for isnow London The International criti Vary, New York Times swe columnist for The Stage and regular guest fn TY adi, arts and me ogranmes: He curently wet thehoried biography of Stephen Sondheim. You can red his fscinting ig it Ses sting legacy on page 30a walla Iisetorng reviews inthe ction Starting on page 9.Contents What to expect, from news and features to expert reviews of fe shows and recordings, in this issue of Musicals magazine 13 The Music Man, covered in Broadway Bulletin (and Reviews) Curtain Up! 6 Let’sGotothe Movies 40 he latest Musical Theatre news, plus featurettes, quest writers, exclusive interviews and more Features Why we ‘Cain’t Say No’ to Marisha Wallace! 22 From gospel singer to star of Broadway and the West End, 1a Wallace was last seen ip the stage as Ado Annie .omal at the Young Vic, Edward Seckerson meets this unstoppable force of nature Stephen Sondheim: The Radical 30 A the death of the composer-lyricist who transformed Musical Theatre, his official biographer David Benedict sappraises Sondheim's vast legacy through three of his most pioneering works: Company, Sweeney Todd and Assassins he best movies made of stage musicals can shed new light on the narrative and heighten the emotional impact on the viewer, Matt Wolf argues, as he talks us ‘ough the recent flurry of movie releases, from West Side Story to the new Matilda, out in November Ian Le er eee ee ae sis big dreams for the future Corsaro} Newsies Comes to Town 46 Alen Menken's Newsies a surprise hit on Broadw has never been seen in London Until now. Jack Pepper meets the creatives behind the new immersive production opening in Wernbl Musical Theatre Writing: The New Generation 50 i's much harder to get a musical from page to stage than people might think. Editor Sarah Kirkup speaks to visionary organisations in the UK and New York, as well as several trailblazing individuals, who are nurturing the next generation of Musical Theatre writers50 Operation Mincemeat; runaway success CE Cae ean 0 Back to the Future on disc Reviews Live Shows, UK Gur expert wnters travel the length and breadth of the country t 1. depth, the most excit performance and recent revived productions, including Bugsy Malone, The Famous Five Identical, Rehab, Whistle Down the Wind anc! 101 Dalmatians Live Shows, UK/US 72 Matt Wolf reviews two production: Sondheim's Into The Woods, » Bath and on Broadwa Live Shows, US Reviews of major prod running on Broadway, includin the soon-to-close Music Man Hugh Jackman and A Strange Loop Live Shows, US/International Reviews of Goddess in CA, and the North Ar pr of & Juliet in T Recordings c ews of tl Musical Theatre releases, includin. Back to the Future, My Fair Lady SIX: Live on Opening Night, John Barrowman’s new all ‘Centre Stage’ Show Listings Musi s th and international Christmas section! tar Elaine Paige talks about the musicals that mean the most to her, § from Evita - which transformed herlurtain Up! The latest Musical Theatre news, plus exclusive interviews, reports and competitions Phantom to close on Broadway - plus new Global Edition album released Broadway's Phantom ofthe Opera will close on 18 February 2023, aftr its 13,925th performance, Andrew Lloyd Webber’ iconic ruisicl, directed inthis production by the late theatre legend Harold Prince with choreography by the late Dame Gillian Lynne, celebrates its 35th anniversary in January at The Majestic Theatre ~ its home for the entire New York eun, “The show from the British producer Cameron Mackintosh and The Really Useful Company was brought to Broadway by Th Shubert Organlzation after its riembers saw Phantom’ London debut in 1986 (a production that celebrated its 36th anniversary earlier this month). Widely considered to be one of the most spectacular productions in history, Phanfont set the bar with its lavish design, and huge cast As we went to pres, rehearsal had began in New York for Almost Famous the new ‘musical with book and lyrics by Cameron Crowe based on his celebrated film. Previews were due to begin at the Bernard B Jacobs Theatre on 3 October, with opening night set for 3 November. The 2019 world premiere at The Old Globe in San Diego set the record for the highest-grossing show in the theatre's ‘90-year history. An LA Times review called it ‘shimmering and mesmerizing. adding that ‘Tony, Grammy, Emmy and Pulitzer winner "Tom Kit’ score ‘weaves an entrancing tapestry ‘of sound that floats ona cloud of groovy rock: The Broadway production stars Chris Wood, Anika Larsen, Solea Pfeiffer, Drew Gehling, Rob Collettiand Casey Likes. Jeremy Herrin 6M Masia net and orchestra (Broadway largest). In January 2006, it ‘became the longest-running show ‘on Broadvray after it surpassed the nearly 18-year run of Cats, Said Mackintosh: Gaston Leroux’ opera ghost may be disappearing for now, but there is no doubt that Andrew's Almost Famous in rehearsal End of an era: Ben Crawford plays The Phantom on Broadway masterpiece will contin enchant audiences in Lo around the world will return to Broadway. fans: the immediate relea 4 new recording, The Pha sup for New York debut om. Away winds down directs and Sarah OGleby choreographs, Meanvhile, new production photography ‘was released by the London hit musical Come From Away, ahead oft final performances; the show closes on 7 January 2023, “The current Phoenix Theatre cast includes Jenna Boyd, James Doherty, Mark Dugdale and Alice Fearn, Winner ofthe 2019 Olivier Award for Best New Musical, Come Brom Away ~ with ‘musi, lyrics and book by Irene Sankoffand David Hein ~ shares the true story of 7000 air passengers grounded in Canada on 9/11 and the Newfoundland community that invited these ‘come from aviays into their lives For tickets, vist almosifamousmnusical.com; ana comefromawaylondon.couk and one day Two weeks prior to the closure announcement, there was some _more positive news for Phantom the Opera Global Edition, Ts ceight-dise streaming release on Universal Records features cast recordings in seven global languages (Korean, Polish, Hungarian, Mexican Spanish, German, Swedish and Japanese). Each of the global-language albums were released between 1988-20089, but are now presented together for the frst time. Disc one’ highlights compilation, meanvwhile, features the 2022 West End cast recording ‘of Phantoms title track, which was performed by Killian Donnelly and Lucy St Louis at “The Platinum Party in the Palace to honour the late Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee, This new release represents ‘over 30 years ofthe musicals "unique international history Its availabe globally on all major streaming platforms. et0 don and ase of anton of Willkommen, bienvenue to new Cabaret cast Welcome to the new stars of Cabaret, the Olivier Award-winning revival of Kander and bbs musical at Londons Playhouse Theatre. As of 3 October, the production - which began with Eddie Redmayne and Jessie Buckley ~is now led by Callum Scott Howellsas the Emcee and Madeline Brewer as Sally Bowles. Howells ly broke hearts as Colin on Channel 4 series a Sin, while Brewer is best known for ‘TV drama The Handmaid’ Tale Also joining the cast are Sig Sagar as Clif, Danny Mahoney as Ernst Ludwig and Michelle Bishop as Eraulein Kost. Vivien Parry (Fraulein Schneider) and. Richard Katz (Herr Schultz) continue on, Cabaret is ‘currently booking until The new Sally, December 2023, Madeline Brewer For tickets, visit kitha.clabRoll up, roll up, for the UR’s fir: youre reading tis over the weekend that Musicals _magazine goes onsale, 10,000, ‘Musial Theatre fans will right ‘now be gathering at ExCel London for Musical Con, two-day event which is also providing an oficial launch platform for this publication, “The UKs first ever Musial Con s the brainchild of West End Musical Productions (the company behind the successful ‘West End Musical Drive In and ‘West End Musical Celebration events), namely producer Chris Steward and performer/producer Shanay Holmes, Says Steward: "We wanted to bring the whole ‘community together under one roof forthe fist time... Without anandience, there can be no theatre, Tiss forthe fans? From Saturday 22 to Sunday 23 October, ticket holders an expect to encounter at least 60 West End performers and creatives, from & Julie? Miriam inthe Backstage Donmar Warehouse hosts The Band’s Visit This month sees the much-anticipated European premiere of “Tony Award winner ‘The Band’ Visit atthe Donmar Warehouse in London. David Yazbek and Itamar Mosess mesmerising show ~an ‘adaptation of a 2007 cult movie - centres on a group ‘of Egyptian musicians who wind up losin a small Israci desert town, ‘The musical nabbed an impressive 10 Tony Awaeds, including Best Musical, plus a Grammy for its album, Its big gt for the Donmat, and is helmed by its artistic diractor Michael Longhurst, ‘who won major plaudits for his revival of Caroline, ‘or Change, starring Sharon D Clarke, both in the West End and on Broadway, The cast is led by Alon Moni Aboutboul, whose ‘uamerous screen credits include The Dark Knight Rises, Body of Lies and Munich, and Miri Mesika, the seven-time winner of the Israel Female Singer of the Year award. The prodiction, which features an onstage band, runs until 3 December. For tickets, visit donmarwarehouse.com THE BANDS, VISIT oR MstcabMogoeinacom ‘Teak Lee and SIX co-writer Toby Marlow to Crazy for You star Charlie Stemp and Cinderella's Ivano Turco, Planned events Include show previews, cast reunions, unique performances, and competitions lke the tar of ‘Musical Con talent search and «Lip Syne Battle. At Stage Door, fans can get up close and personal With ther stage favourites via mmeet-and-greets and photo and autograph opportunities, while cam enjoy Musical Theatre workshops and masterclasses run by major creatives and West End performers Lever Musical Cont Musicals magaaine will have ‘a major presence, too. Our editorial consultant Edward Seckerson is interviewing Jenna Russell on the Main Stage on the Saturday about ‘working with the lte Stephen Sondheim and shell be performing as well! Plus, ‘our film/Broadway specialist Matt Wolfis interviewing Jonathan Butterell, the director of the show and subsequent movie of Everybody’ Talking About Jamie. Ifyou're at this inaugural event, do come and find us on the Musicals stand (MP24), where well be selling copies of the ‘magazine and chatting to anyone who wants to find out more about our exciting new publication. And if you've missed 4, dont panic. The organksers assure us that Musical Con is set tobecomean annual event, so watch this space For more information, vist ‘musicalcon co.uk ns enthusiasts Following the hit 2019 film based on their story, Cornish singing group has now inspired a new stage show, Fisherman Friends: The Musical. The ‘production set sll ast month from Plymouths “Theatre Royal and is touring the UK, Ireland and Canada, following is 2021 premiere in Cornwall. “The show tells the heart-warming story ofa band ‘of Cornish fishermen who joined forces to raise ‘money for charity by performing traditional working songs lke Keep Haulin” and "Blow The Man Dover But those sea shanties led them to national fame, with hit records and even a spot on the Glastonbury Pyramid Stage, This homegrown success story, a celebration of folk music, community and friendship, is written by Amanda Whitington, directed by lames Grieve and choregraphed by Matt Cole (see our interview with him ‘on page 46). The tour runs until May 2023, with a Christmas season in Toronto, For more Information, visit The show making waves fishermanonstage.com Interval Chatter The Theatre Cafe Diner on Shaftesbury Avenue is now ‘open. The Theatre Cafe's, new venue offers dining surrounded by theatre memorabilia, with Six- and Heathers-themed booths. Greatest Days - The Official Take That Musica, ‘with a book by Tim Firth is embarking on a UK and Ireland tour from 5 May It coincides with the release of the movie version. Algin Boublil and Claude- Michel Schonberg have ann London revival of Martin Guerre 2024, After regaining the rights, they've promised ‘new possibilities’ for the show. Josh Groban wil star in 2 Sweeney Todd revival ‘on Broadway. Opening night i set for 26 Match 2023 Magic at the Musicals returned to London's Royal Albert Hall last month, You can catch up on the station's {app and at magicradio.co.uk until 25 October. ‘The original cast recording of Broadway's Into the Woods was released digitally in September. The CD follows on 2 December. The live-action version of Pinocchio starring Cynthia Erive was launched (on Disney+ last month. The ‘cast alo includes Tom Hanks. Tom Chambers wl play ‘Walter Hobbs in Ei The Musica eight-week season at Lond Theatre from 14 November. ‘Andrew Lloyd Webber's Bad Cinderella, starring Inedy Genao, will open on Broadway on 23 March 2023. ee Maio bnve M7oo) Countdown to Opening Night Carrie Hope Fletcher on making her play debut in Brecht's The Caucasian Chalk Circle Bortolt Brocht sooms like a big departure. 1s my first play and yes itsa meaty text. But ithas music in it, so actly it the perfect transition from sausicals to plays ~ its 1 weird hybrid ofthe two, Tell us about your role, Grusha. ‘She isnt a mother herself, but she takes on this motherhood role, Her storyline asks an interesting Carrle Hope Fletcher tackles Brecht question [sit giving birth toa child and having that blood tie that makes youa mother? Or ist nurturing and raisinga child, ‘whether of not its biologically yours? Grusha i nice transition from the young rles Ive played like Wednesday [in The Addams Fansy],Eponine in Ls Mis and Veronica (in Heathers; she is this young woman who bas to grow up overnight ‘And new songs have been written for this production, using Brecht's texts? Michael Henry isa genius! The songs are extremely hard to learn because of all the complicated time signatures ~ the music has Influences from cultures across the globe (the singing style is, quite folky) - but with his help, weve getting there, We have Zoe West who plays The Singer and she plays the guitar throughout, while the rest of us make alot ‘of noise ~ clapping, clicking, stamping, humming, A scene flows seamlessly into a song — the audience may not even notice at first that a song has started. Would you like to do more plays in the future? fs! Te loved sitting down each day and going through the script, scene by scene. Well state the 8M Maio sve facts, ask questions discuss the characters’ intentions ~ if taken two weeks to get through the scrip in this way, and Tove this level of forensic studying. ‘What can audiences expect? People think of Brecht as serious and highbrow, but actually theres humour here (Jonathan Slinger as Azdak is hysterical ~ hheS an amazing human and an incredible actor), and the way its being staged ~ with incredible sets and costumes ~ means its going to be quite a spectacle. I will also be fun for students who are studying it to come and see it ‘on its feet ~ when its pulled off the page, it really comes to life What's next for you? “The show ends om my 30th birthday; so Tm fying straight off to Disney World with my family Tima huge Disney fan, And after that, be doing panto in Canterbury - its six-week run, so not too intense, although ve never donea three-show day before, ora show that starts at 1030am! The Caucasian Chalk Circle (until 22 Oct) is at Kingson’s Rose ‘Theatre (rosethaatre og): The ‘Sleping Beauty (25 Nov = 8 an) isat ‘The Marlowe (marlowetheatr.com) a= Countdown to Closing Night Sam Tutty on saying a fond farewell to the character he made his own - Evan Hansen What are your thoughts as your three-year journey comes to an end? Ws very surreal knowing the show is ending. started when I was 21 and fm now 24-and-a-half. Its always been a theoretical reality "When I'm finished with Evan,. But now that Its happening, ts so bizarre It’s boon a huge role, let alone for someone making his professional West End debut! In theauditions, Ikind of winged st, But the sustainability of it being reliable for six shows a swoek - that’s what's hard. At first I was intimidated by the repetition, but I've come to realise itsa blessing, Finding new things each night, deciding on a better word placement for that belt... Rd go insane if was a carbon copy. ‘of myself every night You're playing a pretty Intense character too.. My director gave me such freedom to explore Evan while also keeping in line with his vision. I did some research into comfort gestures for those with ‘mental health obstacles, and thats where the Tugging on the Luousers' gesture came from ~ T revert back to that quit a lt There are other things too tapping my fingers, rolling my eyes... They all help me to wear Evans skin easier. But I'm very lucky that I can leave this show atthe door - [find it quite easy tobecome myself again What do audiences love about Dear Evan Hansen? What they're seeing are human beings playing flawed human beings ~ they can identify with at ‘Sam Tutty: the end of a chapter i least one character on stage. The show stil provides escapism, but its not otherworldly ~ ifs ral, and that’ why its important. It allows people with social anxiety or ‘mental health issues to know they are seen - and that theres hope. How are you approaching ‘your final shows? Tm taking every day as being as special as the last one. I'm looking after myself my routine is pretty important to me (I try to eat well, drink sx tes of water a day limit dairy, have ight houts slep), although Pve realised there no fixed routine to ‘ensure that every night Im going to sound amazing. Sometimes anxiety creeps in because I might have not drunk enough, ot I've spoken too much... Theres always that battle, but so long as Tve managed to avoid screaming and shouting, the show will be ‘easier for me! What's next? A big party on closing night ‘with pizza and lots of cheese! And then sleeping, healing and resting. I need to recover from. ‘months of having breakdown ‘on stage every night! Dear Evan Hansen clases on 22 Oct visit dearevankansen.comAVAILABLE NO WHEN THIS BABY HITS 33RPM, YOU’RE GONNA HEAR SOME SERIOUS... ENTERTAINMENT!just as talented as those who can affo! to go to university wouldn't be able Pa Roce 3 - Miriam-Teak Lee Actress & musical theatre é incom VION (elas mela: hi to musicians at all si careers when it’s Wo Tien a helpmusicians.org Deer aa Dee ee ee ee eee eraFrom the Green Room Edward Seckerson on the importance of imaginative revivals, particularly in the case of Golden Age musicals Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma! is reborn in Daniel Fish and Jordan Fein’s bold staging, which is coming to the West End WW Biermann silo tate continues to flourish, surprise excite and even - inthe case of scores ike Jeanine ‘Tesoris Fun Home or Pasek and Paul’ Dear Bvan Hansen ~ thrill, we need to be thinking of posterity, of longevity of shows being reimagined in ever intriguing ways. One of the best things [save last year was Rupert Goold’ terrific evival of Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater Sprig Awakeningat the ‘Almeida, where Fé happily have coughed ‘up the price of a ticket forthe blistering staging of “Totally Fucked alone. But Spring Awakening isa modern cassie; i's the so-called ‘Golden Age’ musicals - with their attendant problems of ften-creaky books and outmoded soclal attitudes ~ that pose much more of challenge and are ultimately kept alive through their cast albums and the ‘occasional concert’ presentation, Actually the first time Isavra modern classic totally transformed was the West End premiere of Sondheinis into the Woods, ‘where the tradition ofa straight Broadway transfer was scuppered in favour of a new production from the then highly provocative Richard Jones. Having seen the rather dreary Broadway original directed by the bookwriter James Lapine in the style ofa traditional (albeit subversive) pantomime, was thrown, ‘a most inviting eurve ball by the hunting Todge set with its row of darkly anonymous doors. Which door would you choose, which path would you take? The essence ofthe show ‘was right there bere your eyes without word being uttered ora note sounded. ‘There are some Musical Theatre enthusiasts ‘who blanch at the prospect of ‘reimagining classic shows and who heastily resist, MutcalsMogszinecom ‘conceptual’ stagings ((or want ofa better word), But even watertight masterpieces must be open to addressing the changing times, and so often isa maiter of perception ~ as ‘opposed to questionable rewriting ~ which can bring that about. A man ofthe theatre like Sondheim was all about his pieces enjoying theatrical reinvention and renewal, and when hheagreed to allow Bobby to become Bobbie in Marianne Eliot’ stunning gender-swapping revival of Company he was, as in everything he did, way ahead of the curve. 66 The Oklahoma! revival is a shining example of how you can not just honour but intensify the drama 99 And here’ another thing: sometimes we ‘underestimate the staying power of classic shows because the original view of them ‘was tailored tothe times in which they first appeared. Lam thinking particularly of the Rodgers and Hammerstein canon where the quality of Hammerstein’ books, inthe case ‘of Carousel, Oklahomat, The King and I, and South Pacific (a Pulitzer Prize winner co-written with Joshua Logan), invites constant re-evaluation, For lat year’s ‘Carousel at the Regents Park Open Air “Theatre, director Tim Sheader focused everything on the grim austerity ofthe piece and music director Tom Deering made 4 Vie out of necessity by rescoring the piece fora grittily urban wind band, But if ever a case were to be made for a bold reimagining, then the transatlantic transfer ‘of Daniel Fish and Jordan Feinis Oklahoma! (Tony Award for Best Revival ofa Musical) ‘ust take the palm. Its quite simply one of the best things I've ever seen inthe genre and shining example of how, without changing 4 word of text or its intentions, you can transform the picturesque Intoa stark reality and not just honour but intensify the drama. London's Young Vie became a brightly lit, stripped pine barn where the open prairie is quite literally drawn on the rear wal, and ‘we are privy toa close-knit community as. suspielous of outsiders as of change. The role ‘of Jud Fry (played here by Broadvay’s Patrick Vall) is key to the success of Hammerstein's book in that regard, but hw often do we see him portrayed as a mean two-dimensional villain as opposed to-a misunderstood loner and a viable contender for Laurey’ affections? ‘The movie version even deprived Rod Steiger ‘of his revealing soliloquy ‘Lonely Room “The contrast between super-brightaess and abject darkness is a disarming feature of Fish and eins staging, and the use of video ‘cameras and disembodied voices lends it a surreal quality. The auction and tril scenes, normally played for laughs, are suddenly uncomfortable (as Hammerstein surely Intended), and the breathtaking denouement Where a defeated Jud effectively ‘offer’ himself to Curly is as shocking asi is heartbreaking, As the great Sondheim always reminded us the play’ the thing. Oklahiomat opens at Wyndham: Theatre on 28 February 2023; visit oklahomawestend.comSrl re cel ofa e SSC ROA ROE WRF 0 nasa Ue WE MRT ee acon SOUNDSIAGE Eee a ui Se CSUR OUT uC US) CC Cea GCC cen eee TS ee UCM) JOHN WILSON of Wilson's hand-picked players. NFONIA OF LONDON ear) aOR UR a A CURVES ROU Les) Cae CUA mR UML ee else} Bette Davis film. Steiner’s passionate, Wagner-influenced music gets inside the head and Pa ae oe rom ORCAS RCW CRORE UR UCR LE MSs Re ee UO ea) RS eae Nor UNUM Se SOR mC OI Se COMMERCE AONE NOV Ramet ceon ed SSRN A ROM R cme mee cease OMA Rm UNOCAL) SCOR CERO eNO Cee SMe Sy WW.CHANDOS,NETBroadway Bulletin Matt Wolf catches the hottest shows running in his home city and reports back ST ew York may be the town AN so nice they named it twice, ‘at it was beginning to fee oddly remote, The pandemic had altered travel such that Thadat actually returned to my home city for two years and eight months, far and ‘away my longest-ever absence, So you can imagine my excitement the fist night back in late August, snaking my way Jetlagged through the theatre district to get a sneak preview at the verses that would soon bbe welcoming me through their doors. Every one of those, indeed, ‘were musicals ~ not because of any aversion on my part to plays, ‘but due to the laws of Broadway physics whereby musical tend to survive the longest. The two plays to see out the summer on Broadway were titles [had already seen in the West End: The Kite Runner and Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, the later recently compressed from two parts to one, “Musicals, on the other hand, proffered veritable cornucopia, largely fed by the Tony Awards in June, which enabled me to catch numerous winners and nominees during 10-show Visit, including three forays Of Broadway. Of those, Iwas specially taken by the reboot (sorry!) of Kinky Boots. The ‘one-time Tony winner seemed as energised as ever within the intimate confines ofthe tage {2theatre, A superb cast was hheaded by Englishman Callum Francis as the high-kicking Lola and Christian Douglas, in robust voice, as Charlie Price, who chooses sparkling footwear over the finicky confines of marriage. The female lead is Danielle Hope, ‘who has moved on impressively from the BBC talent contest (Over the Rainbow, which led to her playing Dorothy in the West End in Andrew Lloyd Webber's production of The Wizard of Os. i MutcalsMogszinecom | saw Kinky Boots ata press performance, and theentire cast was in atendance, That Isnt always the case, as Covid continues to prompt unforeseen absences and a new generation of dynamic leading men are no longer doing eight shows a week Goto The Music Man however, and, barring illness, you'll find rom veterans to newbies, Lwas Hugh Jackman charming from | Iucky'to see Jaquel Spivey and the front as only this decades. Myles Frost, both on sensational long stage veteran can do; film form in A Strange Loop and MJ renown Jackman iscurrently respectively, in demanding roles winningkudos for the new Florian | that are allowing understudies Zeller movie The Son has in no or standbys achancetto shine, way diminished the thrill heso too, when these leading men take clearly takes in le performance. performances of. ‘The same was true of Billy That very scenario has made Crystal in the since-closed headlines atthe vexed revival 66 Kinky Boots seemed as energised, as ever in the intimate Stage 42 99 Mr Saturday Night, adapted ‘of Funny Girl, which I caught from the Crystal-led 1992 atan enthusiast matinee In film of the same name about between the premature departure 4 stand-up comic looking back of the original leading lady, ton the vagaries, personal and Beanle Feldstein, and her starry professional, of his ife. Crystal, replacement, Lea Michele. The a stage natural with a better part of Fanny Brice was played in singing voice than one might August by the carion-voiced Julie expect, found himself tethered to Benko, whom I caught the same an overlong, willy sentimental weekend that saw the release of story that never really asserted its the debut duet album, ‘Hand in need to bea musical: composer Hand, recorded with her husband, Jason Robert Brown has done __jazz.composer Justin Yeager more memorable work elsewhere. exciting times for her, to be sure. | ‘Ann Morrison in her cabaret act Merrlly from Centre Stage The clarion-voiced Julle Benko (right) as Fanny in Funny Girl And I was especially cheered by the seeming ubiquitousness of Stephen Sondhelm, gone from us but gloriously not forgotten, AA starry Into the Woods has, against expectation, turned into event theatre, and the same may wel attend the Josh Groban led revival of Sweeney Todd on Broadway and Daniel Radcifle in Merrily We Roll Along Off Broadway, both due ths season, T actually espied Radclifes forthcoming Merrily co-star, Jonathan Groff in the audience fora tremendous cabaret act, Merrily from Centre Stage at $4 Below from that show's original leading lady, Ann Morrison. Now in her ‘mid-sisties, Morrison looks back on the legendary 1981 flop (which Tsaw tice, ast happens), rewinding through the years as that musica itself does, The result isa tremulous fusion oflifeand att that deserves a London airing. As Morrison, says atthe close of her solo st, echoing the exact tite ofa song which she premiered in that show, well, ‘Now you know We had been ona retrospective journey made possible by 8 musical about retrospection that fest Merrily may not have Tasted long, but Morrison makes of ts abbreviated run something truly momentous. Turn to our reviews section to read live show reviews of ‘he Music Man, MI, A Strange Loop and Into the Woods, asd recording reviews of Mj, A Strange Loop and Mr Saturday Night ve MADMore Interval Chatter In Septernber Regenerate: Lost Songs from the Musleals raised over £14,500. The show featured leading creators of Musical Theatre gifting never-before-heard songs. You can stil View the event on a pay-per-view basis online (visit regeneratemuusicals.com). All proceeds 90 towards Mercury Musical Develonments and Musical Theatre Network, particularly BEAM 2023 (see our feature on pace 50). rector Mike Dixon, who has workes on West End shows like Grease, Aspects of Love and The Boayguard, has shared insights from his 40-year career in Turn Around and Take a Bow! Says Dixon of the book published by Matador in June, The areat teachers, the extraordinary musicians... I's al here Musical ‘Winnie the Pooh The Musical is coming home to the UK in spring 2023, in association with Disney Theatrical Productions, Details of the show, created and directed by Jonathan Rockefellar with music by the Sherr Brothers, are yet to be announced Ain't Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations opens 2t the Prince Edward Theatre in the West End on $1 March 2023, The Tony Award-winning Broacway show tells the story of the world's areatest R&B grou The brand new musical Cake: The Marie Antoinette Playlist, Morgan Lloyd Malcolm, is tour Drew McOnie and the UK from March 2023, The Turbine Theatre's Paul It's great to see the ragional theatres be as passionate as | am, MTFestUK 2028 submissions are now open, London's Wicked, which recently celebrated its 6th has welcomed back the actor, broadcaster and ex-Blue Peter presenter Mark Curry as The Wizard, Meanwhile, Bridgerton's Jonathan Bailey is Joining Jon M Chu's Wicked! movies as Fiero Musical Theatro Rave: The After Party is returning to Heaven nightclub under Charing Cross on 4 December. Back hosting is Oscar Conlon-Morrey, currently starring in the West End's Only Fools and Horses. The Broadway cast recording of The Music Man. starring Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster, was released on 23 September. The final block of tickets for the show are on sale for performances th January 2023 oo YE Meson Ball and Boe ‘Together in Vegas’ The winning double act of Michael Ball let loose ~ and to give and Alfie Boe are back inaction, The popular thele fans some pairarereleasinga brand-new album on glamorous escapism, Decca Records thelr fifth studio album as Ball and Boe wll be ‘a duo —and this time, they'e betting bigon hoping to match the success oftheir previous Las Vegas records, suchas their debut ‘Together the Think Elvis, Kenny Rogers and the follow-up ‘Back Together’ and thete festive Rat Pack, with tracks like Tuck Be A Lady, special Together at Christmas, al of which ‘Sway, Viva Las Vegas'and“The Gambler’ reached number one in the charts. Theit new appearing on the album, as well as medleys recording, “Together in Vegas is released on ‘of beloved Frankie Vall and Tom Jones 28 October and will be available for songs Its chance forthe West End lading streaming via al the usual platforms. man and the opera and dasical music starto Visi ballandbee.comt Get your stagey fix Westway news: on Box Office Radiot more Sessions TheUKsonly station | ANNOuNCed, plus dedicated obothsuge | Kerry Ellis album. and sereen, Box Office Radio isa Musical Theatre fanis haven, It began daring the frst Covid lockdown asa hobby for radio presenter Josh Haywood, but has grown into a popular station about to celebrate its second birthday ‘As wellas music from stage shows ~ West End, Broadway and beyond ~and from movie musicals, Box Office Radio features news and reviews to keep you updated on all the stagey gossip, plus there are ‘competitions with fabulous prizes. You can listen Westway Music’s Rhydian ‘online, via the fee app or on smart speaker: Roberts with Rob Houchen Visit baxofficeradi.couk The Westway Sessions -an . intimate concert series launched Diary of a Performer: in May 2022 by the creative folk at i the Musical Theatre label Westway Hamilton ane Me Music have announced theie Forany Hast fans and! coraspiring Musial Theatre performers, Hanlon and Mes amust-read, Published by Nick Hern in July, the 224-page hardback book ~ complete with dozens of colour photographs, many ofthe never seen before charts the journey f Giles Teera nev line-up of artists. Performers in Novemberat the wonderfully intimate music venue Piano, ‘Smithfield include Joe Stilgoe (on 1st), Lee Mead (13th), Billy Luke Nevers (20th) and Louise Dearman (27th). They follow inthe footsteps of Alice Fearn, Rob Houchen and John ashe prepares forhis debut as Alexander Hamilton | Owen-Jones, among others ln the West End opening ofthe show in December | Meanvhil, the label has 2017. Comprising entries from Tereras journal, which | announced some exciting new chronicle the year-long process of taking onthe role, releases, including ‘Kings & from initial audition to curtain up, tsa fascinating | Queens an album from Kerry Insight into the research, commitment and dedication | Elis due out in spring 2023, and requited of any Musical Theatre performer. As Christmas album from Jason. in-Manuel Miranda writes in his foreword to the | Manford,a new addition to book, this sone of the most joyous and clear-eyed | Westway Music’ roster. approaches to playinga character that Thave ever read’ | Visi westwaymusiccomRe + Behind the ong Stephen Sondheim’s ‘Being Alive’ from Company The singer, pianist and songwriter Joe Stilgoe on one of the rare Sondheim works that has found an audience away from the footlights 100 close. cn It ane eon Stephen sons, Calo of thereto aes croon-compleer purer ofan per ts bene te eis of bath word ad se pak totbheeny theca Batons er moral the Sorofie He long th we tegen ol “hig Ae the crn Company show that aod Ws pel bate Sal siento own ‘ent cs and Tyrol ‘tne Ht prodacton ring oe niga then Kavi Lent ele abe Soni as then bess Delve th evoking he chegingfgener ss ope get dria Tibet sed sorting inhi Pepe ve ona Geamtimer ith shor hi theranhinl that Compa wesan aap ice ‘align fr Sond ora Sli gc ond somone tourist wth hen sen the sho 197 ith erg th lg Ale wa thea thse and theemtonal he he show te ta atop fdas mar hk Geek tying Sonn sft an whoa the wting proces, te tis cnc tm how rer Mary g Bergman Somat wen, | eye renanent PTC terongbte Ln j a the show. Itwas one of the rare Sondheim works that found an audience away from the footlights, He often wrote with such detail and particularity for MsteabMogesinacom Rosalie Craig as Bobbie in the West End run of Company characters and context that it hard to lift them from the stage, but this song it it the mark. Some of the great voices recorded it Streisand, Dusty Springfield, Lea Salonga, Bernadette Peters. In fact, more women had covered Itaway from the stage than men, so the precedent was set early on 1e wrote — ‘Losing My Mind, Send In The Clowns, ‘Nothing’s Gonna Harm You' - buthe nated to be predictable and so, ‘often, his music takes a dip Into ‘uncharted waters. With ‘Being Alive, were quite contained, ina happy harmonic box -a song in a major key about 6 The key change is big news - it changes the world of the song 9 9 for there tobe ambiguity, or, I suppose, relatability inthe lyrics. But lets start with the music. Sometimes Sondheim sailed lose to functional harmony, the kind we know from pop songs, or from lesser composers in the theatre. He never wanted it to bbe easy but sometimes he found a simplicity to the harmony and melody which just clicked, I get that from afew others ‘very major things but with aching sadness that almost makes the music fel as if ts ina minor key, He would love the analysis — ‘sometimes writers just write ‘without being aware ofthe tools they're using, but Tm certain he knew with every note and every syllable what he was intending to invoke, Sondheim always tied to marry the words and music ~ tontent dictates fort Nowe Mon was his biggest thing Tr saying the words out loud and you will get pretty close tothe melody he then wrote (One of the cleverest instincts {sa repetition of certain notes ‘This is something of a Sondheim trademark and, thanks tothe relative luxury that comes with composer being his own lyricist, itmeans that when he gets the alchemy absolutely right it comes close to perfection. Take the use ofthe major seventh note, for ‘example, which reappears with glorious insistence throughout ~ ‘Someone to sit in my chair / And ruin my sleep / And make me aware / Ofbeing alive... The underlined syllables are on that key note. It sounds optimistic, four ears are convincing us its leading othe end ofthe rainbow, bt the lyrics tll us otherwise ‘And so the song goes on, taking us to that uncertain ‘midale:‘Make me confused / ‘Mock me with praise! The harmony shifts down a tone, not related and a litle estles, like we donit know whether to trust the sentiment. Then were back upto the original pitch, the harmonic home, before the bil to the key change. This key ‘change i big news, Sometimes people sniff ata key change, particulary a semitone up ~ they think its too obvious. But what this does is change the world ofthe song. Suddenly Bobbie is ina different frame of mind ~ the Iyries become more convincingly positive, more certain ofthe value of not being alone, Because, as Bobbie says: ‘Beingalone isalone | Not alive! ‘Somebody crowd me with love..? ‘Oh, this is why he’ the best ~ crowd me with love! Is in the details This is the human ‘condition ~ tis is what love is, ‘This is what Bobbie needs its what we all need. The striving for affection, the desire tobe held to be understood, to be knoven, tobe seen, to be love. Tobealive.M To read our review of oe Stilgoe’s “Theatre, turn to page 88 Mie ln MSx, Rising Star ,noushka Lucas The recent Oklahoma! lead is ready to tell her story in a new show, learns Matt Wolf The facts Anoushika Lucas isthe 34-year-old smulti-hyphenate (singer-songwriter: actor-theatre Park Theatre two: hander, Kiook’ Las Stand, which provided an early showease for ‘wo-time Olivier Awardwinner Sheila Atim, and found herself a finalist atthe NAMT Festival in New York ‘were something like and they picked eight, one of ‘which vas ours It as amazing? composer) who recently electrified the Young Vicas Laurey in Oklahoma ‘Maybe Idosit need Solo: Anoushka Lucas to choose says this “There D entries protean talent, who will premiere her solo show, Elephant, this autumn at Londons Bush Theatre Beginnings Born (to musician parents) in Hammersmith, ‘west London, Lucas recalls being academic and ‘naturally good at languages’ she studied Russian and Italian at Oxford, Not musle or theatre? ‘saw one play at Face time Siacring roles followed as Mary Magdalene in Jesus Christ Superstar in Regent's Parkand on to her conflicted, brilliantly compelling Laurey 1n Oklahoma! (witha detous to play the French princess opposite Kit Harington’s Henry V atthe Donmar). The radical Rodgers and Hammerstein rethink save university she says ofa career that she calls 'a complete mistake, My younger sister keops announcing plans for her life, andLucass image emblazoned on the poster. T thought, itis show doesn't do what we want i to, Tromind her that the entirety of my career has been an accident You dont have to plan toohard!” its on my face The music woman Lucas embraced music professionally And now It willbe just Lucas, ‘piano and a mic stand on view at the Bush daring the run of Elephant, whose title references, amongst other things, the clephant in the room of race which wastit spoken of earlier inher career. 'T was brought up not to talk about race because it was rude and ary card’ That process isa large part because racism was apparently of wha in Elephant ‘over, so when youre raised that way, how do you self-identify? Atthe same time, Elephant, sheadds with a hugh, ‘wil be more fan than what I'm saying: there will bea lot of chat and wel before theatre. “Everyone save meas someone gigging ina Jazz bar at 1pm; she says, as befits someone who formed a band at 22 and, four yeas late, released an album, ‘Dark Soul, that got picked up by Radio 2 'I was like This is going tobe my callin Stagestruck Her dad loved ‘musicals, and so young Anoushka dreamed of playing Nancy in Oliver! or Eliza Doolittle. In fact, Lucas first professional storytelling and then some songs’ lephant is atthe Bush Theatre from 24 October ~ 12 November; for tickets, visit encounter with Musical Theatre was asa writer: she collaborated fom the lyrics and score for a 2014, ushtheatreco.uk 16 M Musas vet Alan Turing musical scores Edinburgh Fringe success Following successful ran atthe intimate Paradise at The Vault venue during the 2022 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the producers ofthe Musical Theatre piece Alan Turing: A Musical Biography are planning a farther life for the shows. A 2023 Edinburgh Fringe outing ‘s already inthe diary, while, before that, a runat the Drayton Arms Theatre, London SWS, is confirmed for 5-6 March, stint at the King’s Head Theatre in Islington is also inthe pipeline. Composed by Joel Goodman and Jan Osborne, this small-scale studio production considers the life of Alan Turing, the great ‘mathematician, computer scientist and cryptographer. The musical reflects on the key role Turing played in breaking Nazi Germany's naval code Enigma, which almost certainly brought World War Two toa swifter conclusion, saving potentially millions of lives. “The show also deals with the shameful treatment of Turing on account of his homosexuality. Convicted of gross indecency” in 1952 (some 15 years before the decriminalisation of homosexuality in England and Wales in 1967), Turing agreed to a process of chemical castration in order to avoid a prison term, He tragically committed stcide in 1954, ‘A modest two-hander, performed during the Edinburgh run by Joe Bishop and Zara Cooke (or Shania-Grace Thompson for some of the performances), the piece moves back and forth between the accounts of Turing’ life glven bya fictitious biographer named Andrea Hodge (based, one assumes, on Turing’ real biographer ‘Andrew Hodges) and the recollections of the mathematician himself ‘The musical - which is currently played toa recorded score of keyboard and string music in the classical stage musical styl, performed in a series of solos and dues ~ is ‘most definitely’ scheduled to play Edinburgh in August 2023, says Goodman, (On 18 September, The Stage newspaper announced the winners of is 2022 Debut Awards, celebrating emerging theatre talent in the UK. Musical Theatre winners included Julia Cheng for her unforgetable choreography in the West End revival of Cabaret, as well as Elijah Ferreira for his performance in Hedwig andthe Angry Inch, and composer John Patrick Elliot for Cruise, You can livestream the whole ceremony via The Stag’s Facebook page.pas rar The respected composer, lyricist, orchestrator and accompanist Jason Carr talks us through the details of Jerry Bock’s masterpiece Pe of articles about classic scores, I wanted a show that was firmly established in the repertory, which still confidently holds the ‘a musical to be frst in a series stage in contemporary revivals, and with ‘which I also have a personal connection, Fiddler on the Roofis so well-beloved, it can almost be mistaken for folk culture Surely those dances at Taeitels w ding are ‘genuine old Jewish tunes, rather than new ‘compositions from the same Broadway season that gave us Helio, Dolly! and Funny Gitte But no: Fiddler was a glorious collaboration between composer Jerry Bock, lyricist Sheldon Harnick, bookwriter Joseph Stein and dlirector/choreographer Jerome Robbins — not forgetting Sholem Aleichem, author ofthe stories, orchestrator Don Walker, dance music arranger Betty Walberg, and many others, Including the first Tevye, Zero Mostel. (Yes, the original milkman with five troublesome daughters was not Topol, who starred in the subsequent London production and movie, bt the zany comic star of The Producers.) Many of Fiddlers songs havea definite semitic flavour, often using the characteristic scale with flattened second, sixth ana seventh notes. The daughters’ Matchmaker is the leat covertly Jewish song - a good of Broadway ‘waltz that Richard Rodgers would have been proud of - which maybe signals that these girls will rebel against the strictures of tradition, Legendary orchestrator Don Walker (Carousel, Cabaret) used a standard 25-piece Jason Carr’s liste Fiddler on the Roof (0ST) Chaim Topol et ai lsaac Stern vn Mation Picture Orchestra John Williams EM! You'll often hi show ing people for calling cast albums “soundtracks’, however this realy is the original soundtrack (OST) the 1971 movie ad: MutcalsMogszinecom $ Fiddler on the Roof instrumentation ~ five woodwind, seven brass, nine strings, and percussion ~ but replaced the more customary piano (continuo instrument of choice for musical comedy) ‘or harp (for opereta) with accordion, guitar and mandolin, When I madean eight-piece chamber version for Trevor Nunn 2019 London production, an accordion was absolutly crucial, providing the organic (non-synthesised) glue ina line-up without whole wind, bras or string section. In many scores, an older, leading actor with limited vocal ability is balanced by a strong female singer like Lerner and Loewe's My Fair Lady. n Fiddler, Mostel was paired with Maria Karnilova (the original Tessie Tura in Gypsy) as his wife Golde. Though both strong performers, it fell to the daughters and their suitors to do the musical heavy liting, notably in Hodes sublime and heartbreaking second-act song Far From The Home I Love, originally performed by Julia Migenes. This, is solid Broadway practice, where comedian g recommendation ‘a couple of s version, but Willams sé jeatures Isaac Stern in the thrilling Main Title, The Original (Broadway) Cast Album of any show is always a vital document (RCA/ Sony Masterworks Broadway), or you could have Topol on the Onginal London Cast for the full theatre score (Sony West End), but this sounds luxurious. Watch out for the SOth Anniversary reissue with more bonus tracks than you can imagine on three CDs! ngs missing from the stage he orchestra under John wonderful, a ‘Trevor Nunn’s Menier Chocolate Factory production of Fiddler on the Roof, 2019 stars lke Bert Lahr (Cole Porter's DuBarry Was a Lady, MGM% The Wizard of Or) ‘or Victor Moore (Porters Anything Goes, Gershwin’ Of Tee I Sing) were balanced by more legit singers. Similarly, Rodgers and Hammersteins The King and Tbalanced Yul Brynner’ actorly King with strong singers as the young lovers Tuptim and Lan Tha. Though Fiddler contains many songs in recognisable Broadway song forms ~ Sunrise, Sunset and If Were A Rich Man’ have clear verse and refrain sections in regular eight-bar phrases - the scorealso plays with freer structures in Tevye’ conversations with the Almighty, as well as “The Dream Twenty years earlier, Oklahomal choreographer Agnes de Mille might have made this extended sequence pure narrative ballet, but here its a wonderful mixture of narration, quasi-operatc melodrama and dance: consummately crafted integrated Musical Theatre What i really unusual about Fidler, however, ithe strength of its book. Though full of sure-fire humour, i isthe show's undoubted dramatic power that has ensured its classic status, above other Bock and Harnick shows like Fiorello! (winner of the 1960 Pulitzer Prize for Drama) of the glorious ‘She Loves Me, whose score is packed with ‘more great songs than any one musical has 4 right to contain. Ths story of refugees fleeing religious persecution remains palnfully timely, and its intergenerational tensions have proved powerfully resonant even in apparently very different cultures, lke Japan, where the show has been much revived, Despite its downbeat ending, this musical isa triumphant celebration of the tenacious human spit Lait Moe ave M17mr Bring Back That Show! Elton John’s Aida A212 Bton oh ler kno bot equally brilliant rock-pop musical (the “other being, of couse, The Lion King). Tim Rice provided the Iyrcs,and the show receive its Broadway premiere on 23 March 2000 at the Place" Theatre, with Heather Hadley Inthe ttl roe it closed on 5 September, 2004, Based on Verdi’ opera of the same name, i chronicles love triangle between Nubian princess Aida, Egyptian soldier Radames (with whom shes in love), and Amneris the Pharaohs daughter, to whom Radames is betrothed “The musical began with a proposal from Disney to create an animated feature film, following the success of The Lion King. John, however, suggested a stage musical instead Before the production debuted on Broadway, it underwent a lengthy workshopping process. During its out-of-town runs, several songs shuffled, and a gigantic golden pyramid set piece, costing $10 million and powered by hydraulic controls, was abandoned. The musical ran for 1852 performances, were cu, cast ‘The Original Broadway Cast recording of Aida won the Grammy in 2001, and its not hard to see why: Elton Johns remarkable score takes inspiration from a plethora of genres: theresa strong influence of African ‘music but also Motown, modern reggae and gospel, as wells his own pop-rock style, Such eclecticism attracted tothe ile role pop stars such as Toni Braxton, Michelle Williams and Deborah Cox during the show's Broadway run. ‘Alda has since been staged in more than 20 countries and translated into 14 diferent languages, including Korean, Estonian and Portuguese. The frst international production was in the Netherlands in 2001, performed entirely in Dutch, and ran fortwo years. But despite being the home country of both its lyricist and composer, the UK has never presented a professionally staged Aida, However, that may be about to change. In an interview for Broadway Podcast Network in February this year, Schele Williams = who was in the original cast, and, Heather Hadley as Aida on Broadway as Alda’s understudy, played the role 72 times ‘on Broadway ~ confirmed that she is directing «revival of the show Initial plans had been for national tour in the US, but Covid put paid to that. Nov, the show is due to open in Holland in 2023 and will play a number ofcities before - wait fr it - potentially coming to London. imagine it wll open ‘on the West End before we come back here [to the US|; she said. "Tim and Elton really ‘want it to bein their home country. im excited to bring it to England! Vv EX VU E FOC US Theatre Royal Drury Lane, West End Where? he heart of Covent Garden has cont Significant dates ‘The Lane’ has a tumultuous history: It was built in 1663, destroy rebuilt, and then it burnt 1209. eh ditorium was added fire in 1672, down again in inthe by Andres 2000 in 2019, /d Webber in renovations began nd the theatre reopened in July 2021 Architect Benjamin Wyatt desianed current building in 1812, restored by Haworth mpkins in 2021 Capacity 2196 About The Theatre Royal Drury Lane is an integral part of London's West End, The world’s oldest theatre in continuc ‘opened by Charles I he retuen us use, it was fi 18 M4 Hscals ene ued: every reigning Eritish monarch s attended in London to have two he result o .areement between Georae Ill and George IV. This eccentri Madeleine Lloyd Webber's £60 million restoration, with the King's Side andthe no The Lane's sumptuous interior iy royalcannection Pri yy continues 8. As Andrew Llo\ fed at the ‘The theatre is ith people throughout the day, nat just oming to see a show: 3h, has rightly remained on the he theatres finally filled The focus, thoi experien: More than been removed stages in Lond: roductions include Char Factory ‘and the Choe 18s Side highliahted by ailed embroidery, interior designer Alexander Waterworth and architects Haworth Tompkins have also restored it to its c rgian- inspired splendour, the refurbishmenthas sh ree new restaurant ar 00 seats have to give audiences a better view of est and most sechnologically adva Recent (2017) and the iconic revival of 42nd Street (2019). Currently booking until March 2023 is the immensely riginal featuring Christopher Oram's set design which wcases Elsa's 5 freezing effects against the snowy P of the Northern Lights Another visual spectacle from the restoration is artist Maria Kreyn's orginal paintings: monumental contemporary pieces that were specially commis by Andrew Lloyd Webber with the theatre's history sych lyptic interpretatios of Shakespeare reach up tonine feet in heicht, rivaling the scale of the productions that continue t towards this th edJabberwocky Theatre s work by Rebecca Ap} ongwriter Tim Connor on an exc: in iin and Susannah Pearse Finding the strength to stand up to the people trying to push them down - Jabberwocky at The Other Palace in 2018 Teter fora Victorian asylum, But then you spot a trolley of coat hooks, just like those in a modern school, And there’ the floor: row upon row of black-and. white squares, like a chess set You've entered the topsy-turvy world ofthe new British musical Jabberwocky, where nothing is quite how it frst appears. This is also a tale set across thvo different eras. Woven into an eclectic score, an all-female cast of schoolgirls sing choral vocals in the prim and proper English tradition, But that sound rubs shoulders with grooves that bring to mind the 80s band Madness, Asolo cello line passes the baton toa driving rock- guitar passageas we encounter our two heroines, lora (inthe Victorian cra) and Jess (contemporary). Theirs isa story of young Women grappling with the rules their respective societies arbitrarily impose on them. When we first see them, they are centre stage gazing directly at each other ~ but ‘unaware that they're doing so fhrough a mirror created out of those two coat-hook trolleys. The score largely comprises three sound worlds explains ‘composer and co-bookwriter Rebecca Appin, "The firs is lyrical and classical, forthe Victorian era, Te second Is rocky, forthe contemporary world. And the third has a more quirky sound, forthe world beyond the mirror, With lots of overlapping vocal textures ina classical vein? Applin (BAFTA nominated and the first female Cameron, Mackintosh Resident Composer) and Susannah Pearse (composer ofthe music for John Famemore’ Souvenir Programme on BBC could exist in both a Victorian and current-day time frame, orhasnit changed for young women’ She and see how much ha continues ‘So there are parallel scenes whete Flora gets her hair chopped olf in the asylum while Jess gets hers cut by schoo! bullies The beating heart of the show jumped out at us from Lewis Carroll original poem: explains Applin, "Theresa line in ite"And hast thou slain the Jabberwock? These gles are forced to face their A story of young women grappling with the rules their societies arbitrarily impose onthem JW J Radio) met through a writer’ ‘dating event held by Mercury Musical Developments in 2007. T remember Sue being the on woman in a room full of men} s Applin, (We made a beeline foreach other! They found they both wanted to tell stories with strong female messa ‘work is often ensemble-based, Including Hourglass, which premiered atthe University of Chichester earlier this year ‘With Jabberwocky, we looked atthe central idea of mirror explains Pearse, the lyricist and co-bookivriter. ‘Something that greatest fears ~ their own personal Jabberwocks ~ until they find the strength to stand up to the people trying to push them down! The show’s authentic sound and feels, in part, born out of how it vas conceived. Commissioned by British Youth Music Theatre in 2011, it was staged in Plymouth before further productions in Margate (2017) and London (2018). The creatives initially wrote the show over two weeks of Intensive workshops with the s0-strong ¢ school world, particularly in the sequence Stupid Litle 3. The bullying Girt, was inspired by the kids brainstorming what they heard in their own school corridors “Being around young people helps you find that contemporary language! says Susannah. ‘It’s no ood us guessing ati. Some of the stuff that went in was quite cruel, But they kept reassurin ‘me, “Ob, yeah, wed definitely say that The show's most recent outing at The Other Palace in London in April 2018 received rave eviews from the press. The top-drawer creative team was led by director Lake Sheppard (currently steering the mega-hit & Juliet ‘on the toad to Broadway), He brought to bear is expert skill in tellinga story from a childs perspective, honed during his time as associate director on the RSC’ Mati. With affectionate nods to Alice in Wonderland, a twinned female story (in the mould of Wicked Elphaba and Glinda) plus a score witha kinetic rock edge, what's not to love? Little Wornen this isnt ~ and gloriously so, Because so much happened before Alice showed up. To find out more about the ‘musica Jabberwocky, visit rebeceaapplin.co.ukijabberwocky ”Miriam-Teak Lee, eponymous star of & Juliet in the West End How long have you been Do you have a special diet playing J or routine? Right from the workshop in No partying! I doa lot of 2018. ll never forget when steaming, and [ve taken dairy ‘we returned post-Covid: the ‘oat of my diet. [cariteat too audience went crazy. late though Tm always hungry after performing. When do you arrive at the theatre? How do you wind down? Warm-up is Ipm for matinees It’s difficult, [have so much and 6pm in the evening ~ energy ive with my patents, I sometimes arrive earlier to get and my mum always wants the Inthe zone. Once Pm in costume, detalls ofthat show. She supported [feel myself becoming Julie. ‘me right from the beginning. Are audiences still surprised How do you keop the role by the show? of Juliet fresh? S During my frst number, ‘.Baby Every time I goon, I pretend Hear her roar: Miriam-Teak Lee leads & Juliet in the West End ‘One More Time’ they're not It the fist time — so I ean react sure whether to laugh - because to whalever comes at me. Itry © | Definitely: Were part ofthose | areand being true to yourself its dramatic and emotional, it ave fun with it. conversations around gender Everyone can relate, transforms thet idea of the song, and normalising it. Like with But then they get on board, What's it like adjusting to [non-binary character) May, we | And it's now gone global. now cast members? support their journey. But equally | Its amazing! Broadway; Toronto, How do you maintain your Tove having fresh energy coming | when May hurts Juliet, she treats_| Melbourne. To think of where we vocal health? in, Wellet the new actors explore | May like any other friend, started and how is grown, This Thavea singing lesson every two and Interpret the character thelr show deserves it weeks, doing genres like opera, way - were nol married toany | Do youhave lots of return | & juliet atthe Shaftesbury Theatre ‘which maintains my technique, past ideas, audience members? is booking until 25 March 2023 Then when I do the bel-y Yes, its cool, were getting a cult | (visit andjulletthemusial co.uk); numbers in the show, itcomes Are you proud of the show's following. Ths story touches read our review ofthe Toronto ‘out consistently, progressive representation? people: itsabout loving who you | premiere on page 79 Feed back on Musicals magazine - and win tickets! x We need your help! Please tell us what you like about this launch issue of Musicals magazine, and what you want to see more of, in our online readership survey. Please visit our website (MusicalsMagazine.com) where you can also enter our competition to win a pair of tickets to Les Misérables at London's Sondheim Theatre including one night’s stay with breakfast at a Radisson Rad 56 Blu Edwardian Hotel in central London. ees Complete the online survey and enter our competition at MusicalsMagazine.com C= rac apy 20 M Musca ewe MostaleMogesineomSUBSCRIBE TO MUSICALS MAGAZINE Musicals is the new magazine celebrating the World of Musical Theatre, from the West End to Broadway and beyond See ete ee eee eT Seal 7 e ‘ cr Marisha Ce SCus Wallace Bait Serre oo eae v Dei Sal Pere Nh ec a can © beset ia Bere ay @ Cee Subscribe today and never miss an issue! Waele kel geome AM Cet Call: O800 137201 (UK) or +44 (0)1722 716997 (Overseas)‘Cover stery Mt Maa Mari Wallace has transition from esilience and risk- taking, Edward Seckerson w mn the sie of London buses ~ and i that wast ean honorary Brit then nothing| first met Wallace when she joined me for an episode ‘of my cabaret-cum-conversation series Comparing [Notes (then at Pizza Express Live, now at Crary Cogs) and I was instantly hooked by her charm, her smarts and her phenomenal presence, When Wallace sings, she is storyteller and one-woman band rolled into one. Her spectacular vocals med something - there’ an expressive purpose to every rif, every lick, every run. {remember she kicked off our gig with the Etta James classic ‘Somethings Got A Hold On Me’ and signed off ‘with Efe, That And I Am Telling You’ was so hot that the venue} air conditioning has never been the same since. Put simply, she inhabited the song that sets Effie off on her journey towards independence and, more ‘importantly, individuality, ‘Wallace adores the number - and she ovens it. ‘Tve sung tin so many different settings and it has the same ‘impact every time, and that’ the essence ofa great song. I've done tina Jazz space, I've done it for people who really dont appreciate Musical Theatre, I've even done itasan opener for Simply Red! And every time Ive sungit, is taken me to another level. [auditioned for American Ido after singing It ata talent show? ‘She sums up This song has followed me my whole life The thing is, thas so much emotion, so much ‘passion, tha it allows you to show everything your voice can do. How often can you show everything in one song? Do it right and it always sends the crowd wild? ‘Taking London by storm: as Effie White in Dreamgirls at the Savoy Theatre, 2016; and as Becky in Waitress at the Adelphi, 2019 24 O Morcal ve MonclstogezinecomBut thats assuming, of cours, that you can do it ight, and do it eight times a week. Wallace soulfil belt can melt your face bat it doesnt fry her vocal cords, And that because she knows her voice and how to keep it healthy. She speaks ofthat raspy powerhouse sound hher sound ~ being all ‘smoke and mirrors the critical fusion between head and chest registers so cleverly mixed that what might sound lke a pure belts actually anything but. You don’ hear the join ‘behind the mask. ‘may come as no surprise at this point to learn that fallace started out with the intention of teaching muse. Shed grown up doing what comes naturally in ‘small farming town in North Carolin, which was about as far removed from the glitz and glamour of, Broadway and the West End as it was possible tobe. Of course, she sang gospel, the root of all soul, but in ‘order to win a place in the musie programme that would set her on the path to her teaching qualification, she had to earn and deliver an Italian opera aria. As she puts it herself Td never sung in Italian before - I could barely sing in English!” ‘Then came the bombshell. The auditioning committee for the university could hear a problem with her voice and one of the professors suggested she consulted an ENT specialist. A vocal cyst was discovered and surgery ‘was the only option. The spectre ofthe Julie Andrews saga loomed larg. There was a chance shel never MteabMogorinacom 66 | loved that while Dinah Washington was making smooth, beautiful sounds, Etta James was like, ‘I’m gonna try and sound as black as I can!’ 99 Far right Bringing the house down as the no-nonsense Motormouth Maybelle in Hairspray at the London Coliseum, 2021 sing again, So three months before going to university she was walking around town with a white board (no ‘mobile-phone texting back then) hanging around her neck. No speaking, Silence was golden, She had to quit her waitressing job. Happily, the next time shed be waiting tables it would bein London’ West End, to snusic by S The operation did the trick, albeit with alot of intense rehabilitation, Musical Theatre seemed like a good ‘option at this point so Wallace double-majored in it~ receiving alot of help froma teacher well-versed in ‘opera but more importantly inthe Science’ of belting, Indeed, she was writing a PRD thesis on it. This was. around the time of the game-changing rock musical Rent on Broadway, says Wallace, and young voices were disintegrating at an alarming rate as they sereamed their way through an eight-shows-a week schedule, Her teacher told her tha the key was inher ‘legit’ voice, her head voice. The trick was to deploy that without changing the quality of everything else that made her voice special ‘She told me that I needed to sing lke Leontyne Price if wanted to sound lke Beyoncé, You have to know how to mix these two things together. You want the breath support of Price but you want the style of Beyoncé, Also, i'you want to beable to move between «bunch of different styles, having opera as your foundation means you can go anywhere ra Bareilles Muscle ene! M25Bat if you start with belting... There’ a reason why ‘opera singers dont have mics and can sing for hours. But them to sing like me, you have to bring the voice down, My teacher would make me do nasal sounds that jnst didnt sound like me - and when Icried about it ‘held say, “Do you want to sing for two days or forever2™ Forever sounded like a better deal, Wallace drew Inspiration from the diversity of her vocal herolnes: “Fula James for sure, Hloved that she had a raspy voice ~ ‘even when I got the surgery done, my voice naturally had a rasp soit was either get the rasp out or jst lean into it, Elta didrt care about what other people thought ofher voice, Around that time there was Dinah Washington making smooth, beautiful sounds, trying to sound as white as she could while Eta James vas like, ‘m gonna try and sound as black as I can!” ‘loved Whitney, too, She taught me how to story tell a song. Listen to her. She never starts out rifing too much, she sets up the song, “This is the chorus, this isthe story ofthe verse” She adds layer on layer and builds and builds, She knew how to build the story and the song. Thats what I learned from her. Aretha does that really well, to, and Dionne Warwick. I guess that’s what has gotten me into “Musical Theatre: the storytelling. I remember seeing Liza Minnelli and thinking that it wasn't the voice that was so amazing but the way she acted out her song: 26 Me Marcle She's just a girl who ‘cain’t say no’: Wallace brings authenticity and sexual power to Ado Annie In Oklahoma! at the Young Vic When you take away all the cheesiness, the lace and frills, Oklahoma! is this time capsule, an amazing piece under all this dust ‘putt tohher that it exactly this the acting ~ that has proved so winning in Wallace’ stage performances, She has timing and comedic skills to spare but bags of heart, too. She’ a natural actress. Becky in Waitress, Mtormouth Maybelle in Hairspray, and — hold the phone ~ Ado Annie in Oklahoma! ‘Wallace had played this loveable character before in anall-black production in Portland 11 years ago ~ but. nothing could have prepared her for Daniel Fish and Jordan Feinis Broadway reimagining of Oklahoma! when she landed the role (quite late in the day) forthe Young Vie transfer. (Its since been announced that it will transfer to Wyndham’ Theatre from February 2023.) ‘This production was quit simply one ofthe bes things Thave ever seen in Musical Theatre ~ infinitely darker and edgier without changing a single word of text. As Wallace puts its‘ was excited to bring authenticity to the piece. I grew up on a farm, T know what its keto hhave no options, other than fuck, marry, kill. And your survival in the community all about being liked and accepted. To do this piece at the time when gun violence and gun culture in America isall over the news gave it areal edge. At any point in the show the guy playing my dad could shoot someone dead. just lke that. That was the feeling Daniel wanted the show to have. “And with Ado Annie it wasnt just about being funny In the role but also bringing some sexual power toi 1 Cainit Say No” because I dost want to! Daniel wantedThe reimagining of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical by Daniel Fish and Jordan Fein will come to the West End in 2025 me to die into the power of it instead of apologising — to be love-postive, sex postive But this was in the story already. And that was crazy as it was written at ‘time when women werent allowed to do anything. It was so ahead of its time, When you take away all the cheesiness, the lace and fil, t's this time capsule, an amazing piece under allthis dust Just so, Back in 1943, Broadway audiences embraced the homespun aspiration of it bat were in denial about its darker underbelly. IFonly Oscar Hammerstein Il could hhave seen what making Jud Fry a contender’ as opposed toa black-hearte villain would do to the dynamic of the piece, he would have been amazed by his own vision, [eres imino ace hand n approach to her careers her tteless energy, hard. ‘Work and resourcefulness in the building of her own brand and profile. As she says herself, isnot called ‘Showbusiness for nothing. What you see across her creative posting on TikTok and Instagram is tuly what you get. And sheS all about making things happen. In the beginning, new to London, she was very much her ‘own driving force. When she arrived for our cabaret gig (a casual afternoon affair), I complimented her on her ‘outfit. Oh, this is not what I'm wearing, honey - I have feathers!” And, boy, di she. She looked and delivered like star And the bottom line is, everyone wants Wallace back for a repeat performance. MteabMogorinacom | love being a solo artist. A lot of actors don’t like being themselves but I do. Sometimes | don’t like hiding behind a character So how does she see the balance of her future career between solo artist (when we meet she's nearing the end of a UK tour) and Musial Theatre performer? ove being a solo artist feel that’s where I get to be myself. A lot of actors dri like being themselves but do, Sometimes I dont like hiding behind a character like to bein control of space, the costume, the st ls. ‘When you're doing a show you are serving the dream ofthe people who wrote it~ and that great ~ but to ddo something completely your own, a dream that keeps you up at night, that'sa whole diferent level of commitment. Honestly I think nowadays you have to bbea multifaceted arts. I's never just theatre or musi. Everything is connected! ‘And theres something ese, of course, something that chimes withthe way ofthe world right nov at a time of diversity inall senses of the word ~ and that, for Wallace, sto be the one who breaks the mould She didnt see people who looked and sounded like her hen she set off on her Musial Theatre journey. Other than the likes of Jennifer Holliday and Lillias White, she ‘Imagined thatthe only roles open to her would be the ‘ones that, as she puts it, "big black women ean sing! ‘Then she understudied the role of Bea, played by Heidi Blickenstaf, in Something Rotten! opposite Brian ‘Arey James on Broadway and something clicked. She didnt have to be the random black girl who sings a solo, adds flavour, and then leaves. Women ofall body and Musil lewe 1 M 27You can't stay leo mKenuale stage ee PIL sense} Dee EE oa ne Cee ea Mayfair . Kensington . Oxford Street . Covent Garden . Soho . Leicester Square CEU ae LW Letom tia eC ec ceevoice types could be leading classic Broadway and West End shows. The age of the curvy lending lady would be part ofher mission To that end she wants to create a show of her own: ‘Tve been ina lot ofhit shows, Ian smell a hit ~ now Thave to learn how to write one I've been working with the amazing Grammy-winning songwriters Toby Gad and Mattias Larsson. I wrote with Toby over Zoom fora year during lockdown, Just that crash course in songwriting was incredible, Theresa formato ‘everything. Ifyou want tobe the best singer, songwriter, ‘dancer, there a technique for it. I need to go learn what ‘that formula is from the best people. I want to write my ‘own shows also in TV, not just on camera or on stage but also behind the scenes, I want to be more than just a talent forhire. Ifyou can get credit asa writer or ‘a producer you can ovn your talent? erie eee ia aie eeeeee Goa erbuia fe alan Tero isk bert Unt es Glug om Dr cae Oa Sa neuer idan ere tothe kt Ea pring cet Roa Vay eeerenc on oa TES eee agi ca ‘cmt orhe kiya mca 2 ale pace ae eae oe RE SS atte oer ae Multifaceted artist ‘t’s never just theatre ‘or music - everything is always connected’ MutcabMogosinacom I’ve been in a lot of hit shows, | can smell a hit - now I have to learn how to write one. | want to be more than just a talent for hire On tour: foe like that’s where | get to be myself” In the meantime shel be stepping into some really big shoes when sheassumes one of Musical Theatres best-loved and show-stealing roles in the new year The word i already out through the rumour mill, of course, but until the oficial announcement we must sit tight and remain schtum, Sufice it to say Wallace will make It hers as surely as she does pretty much ‘everything she touches - because beyond all technical considerations is her belief in the validity of her dreams and ideas, She ls one ofthe very few artists [can think ‘of whose conviction that she wil get better and better ‘over the next few years is entirely without conceit. She’ learned from the best, she readily admits, but shes also learned never to compare herself tothe best but rather to ask herself how they got to be so good. Never be Jealous, she says earn. Tam often asked what separates the good or ‘even excellent from the great. each for words like fearlessness and risk and Wallace’ own word ‘belief: She's part ofthe yes, we can’ generation except that Jn Wallace case its the doing not the saying that sts her apart Find out about Marisha Wallace upcoming shows and projects at marishavvallacecom Moiese M29heeping Company with Sondheim A year on from the death of the man who transformed Musical Theatre, biographer David Benedict reappraises Sondheim's legacy through the lens of three pivotal works ‘oor Vincent Van Gogh. He died having sold precisely one painting during his lifetime. Mercifully, the only ist of major 20th-century artists upon which the name Stephen Sondheim does rot appear Is “Unappreciated In His Lifetime! From the evening on 11 March 1973 when an Inth allstar cst thre to clbat is already unique the ‘contribution to Musical Theatre in Sondheim: reactionary A Musical Tribute ~a concert happily recorded and world of released - his positon as an artist has been secure A the years rolled along, i became increasingly Broadway clear that he wasnt just an unusually highly skilled COMMercial _composerand lyricist. ne was a dramatist. As much as contemporaries lke Edward Ale ora ltl late, theatre, August Wilson and David Mamet, he was one of Sondheim was Americ#s mos singular and important theatrical 7 woes fs just that his voice was alo musical a radical That said, the breadth and depth of his talent was not immediately a talking point. Despte making his Broadway debut aged 27 with his ist professionally prodced show ~ les-than-triing matter bythe tame of Ws Side Story - his contribution to this ! 20 M Posseee bt s PME NN acm Miter Ltgy Previous page The 2018 cast of Company From left Sondheim with original cast member Marti Stevens; the 1972 programme 2 milestone (deft, éynamic lyrics to Leonard Bernstein knockout music) went unheralded. Indeed, t would bbeanother 13 years before the Musical Theatre world sat up and noticed him. “The show that made that happen, Company, was groundbreaking in numerous ways, Musials tend to deal in simple emotions but Company revealed Sondheim as the musical poet of expressive emotional ‘complexity His work brim with ambivalence and ambiguity. And whats mote, Company also began his ‘unparalleled, uninterrupted run of six musicals over 11 years that changed the artform forever. (Of those headline- grabbing shows that fllowed it~ Follies, A Little Night Music, Pacific Overtures, Sweeney Todd and Merrily We Roll Along ~ only the second wa financial hit, but what became the reactionary world of Broadway commercial theatre, Sondheim was a radical ‘As a tecnager, the budding artist had been mentored by his friend’ father, Oscar Hammerstein, who himself hnad changed Musical Theatre in 1943 when he and Richard Rodgers brought true characters and drama to so-called musical comedy when writing the first fully fledged musical play, Oklahoma! Hammerstein taught Sondheim the rules ofthe game and the apprentice then proceeded to not only find his own voice, but to make non-stop demands of both himselfand his chosen, x clearer was that in artform, breaking the rules time and again in search of the new ‘No two Sondheim shows are alike. The lavish Follies uses pastiches of songwriting in musicals to simultaneously celebrateand warn of the delights and deceits of nostalgia. Pacific Overture, one of his least-known but most evocative shows, uses completely idiosyncratic orchestration to examine the opening up of Japan to American imperialism. Sweeney Todd is an alarmingly funny serlal-illr thriller The flawed Merrily We Roll Along, whose narrative runs backwards from cynicism to innocence, flopped badly, but its slowing score brims with heartbreak. Although over his seven-decade carver he made rare excursions into film and TV, Sondheiis experimental spit was singularly dedicated tothe development of Musical Theatre, Unlike many artists who hit on ‘winning formula and then repeat it, to the advantage ‘of both their reputation and their bank balance, Sondheim refused to stick with the tried and trusted. His approach is summed up inthe song he wrote for the 1976 Sherlock Holmes film The Seven-Per-Cent Solution. His deliciously atch number about « Madam recounting her bedroom exploits is entitled ‘I Never Do Anything Twice ~ and that’s the most succinct summation you'll ind ofhis ethos. Allergic to repeating himself, he forever believed in safety lst i i 5 } i : 5 } 1 2Antonio Banderas in a Spanish-language Company (2021); Patti LuPone and Katrina Lenk in the just-closed Broadway production shard to see now, but when it fist appeared, Sondheimis Company was revolutionary. ight Brown had surprised America with a non-fiction guide for you years earlier in 1962, Helen Gur ‘women seeking commitment-free independence Within three weeks of publication, her Sev and the Single A paradigm shi, it began determining an entire {generations views on marriage {had sold over two million copies. But if bookshops were happy selling something sociologically new and daring, lfe was very different on Broadway. In the traditionally family-friendly artform. ‘of musicals, sexual politics were abidingly conservative. The mindset finally bogan to crack in Apeil 1968 wit ‘out hit Hai, but that sme-changer the counter-cultue,le-it-all-ha was a maverick one-off. The re ith Company It didnt just abandon the Broadway stand: exactly two years later "boy ‘gets gi content, it pivoted around a boy who isnt even looking fora gir. Puting the ‘man’ inte Manhattan, Bobby, the central character, s casually seeing not ‘one but three women, But on the occasion of his 35th birthday, and facing down a slew of well-intentioned birthday messages and a threatened surprise party from “These good and crazy people, my married friends hae finds himself taking stock Sondheim, bookwriter George Furth and director Hal Prince fashioned ‘a musical in which Bobby asks himself: Where am I? ‘Where might [be heading? Is commitment a diety ‘word? Shovld Ibe thinking about,.. marriage? Yet more remarkably, the creators found a completely notion of story. C it has a conceit: the entire show takes pl moment in Bobby's head ashe looks atthe lives and loves of his frends — who, in tura, areal asking why pany doestit have traditional plot, inasingle Like diamond cut at looks at commitment from this eligible multiple angles, Compa aahost of perspectives The show's witty, bracingly unsentimenta sophisticated approach marked it out as something new: Musical n to:musical life by Sondheins forward-looking score. From its open! Tunick created a contemporary, upfront, urban sound aring everything from bright xis stil and theatre for adults. And all ofthat i bro ars, heand orchestrator Jonathan brass to lots of percussion ~ glockensplel to drum ki and, crucially electric guitar. It was 1970 and the ‘writing show about ‘nov It flt cool and, remarkably it still does. The show i, unassalably, Sondheim first mature e- Rather than advancing the (non-existent) plot, the songs exist as mostly wry comment, snappy and It was 1970 and they were writing a show about ‘now’. It felt cool and, remarkably, it still does 3“ Sondheim and director Hal Prince in rehearsal for Sweeney Todd, and the 1980 Theatre Royal Drury Lane programme for that same show memorably skewering marital mores, And almost al ‘ofthem, not least the drily sarcastic “The Little Things You Do Together’ ~a kind of Women and Men Behaving Baally ~ and the mens exquisitely rueful ballad about masriage (Sorry-Grateful), promptly wrote themselves into Musical Theatre history. Sondheim created the all-knowing, much-married character of Joanne for Elaine Stitch, the high priestess ‘of doll, and gave her the sockeroo 11 oklock number “The Ladies Who Lunch, a phrase that went straight into the lexicon, Its deliciously vicious bitterness and. building drama make it one of his most enduring songs. If that weren't enough, is promptly fllowed by the climax, ‘Being Alive: Bobby finaly relaxes his defences and, in the course ofthe song, hasa revelation that he is. ready for commitment, To the delight ofthe intially mildly sceptical Sondheim, Marianne Elliot's recent gender-switched rethink ofthe show - in which, with only the tintest ‘of script tweaks, male Bobby became female Bobbie (Rosalie Craig in London, Katrina Lenk on Broadway) made complete, multi-award-winning sense. In 2022, asi in tune with Sexand the Single Girl, while almost no single man has a clutch of felends persistently worrying about why he isin a long-term relationship, almost every single woman does. It proved, halfa century on, how astonishingly immediate the show remains, Sweeney Todd (1979) Riise es craven it bor ote name inventing comic slasher-movies in 1996 with Scream and its sequels. But Sondheim similarly blended humour and extreme violence to create an audacious masterpiece almost two decades earlier. At the first preview of Sweeney Todd in 1979, Sondheim was sitting next to his librettist Hugh Wheeler Just before Little Priest the dazzling comic duet that closes the fst act, the murderous barber Sweeney suggests getting rid of his victimis body after dark, at which point his cunning partner-in-crime, Mes Lovett, plants her tantalising, terrifying idea of turning the bodies into tasty meat ies. “Well, yes, ofcourse we could do that I dont suppose ‘hes got any relatives gonna come poking round looking for him..” Andas high, plucked chord inthe orchestra rings out, she stops to wait for him to catch her drift. As Sondheim recalled, Fiteen hundred people gasped. I clapped Hugh on the knee and sad, "We did it!” It proved they were inon the story. Ifyou asked me to pick the mos satisfying moment at any of my shows, the exhilaration ofthat moment would be one! Surprising, exhilarating moments are two a penny in this huge and hugely venerated musical. Whichever and theres a whole lt of slicing weeny Todi isa gory glory and yet was the single way you slice itees ae BTN The poster from Chichester Festival Theatre's 2011 Sweeney Todd, and Michael Ball as the blood-thirsty barber in that production biggest gamble of Sondheinis career. He took the darkest, most da ygerous material ever handled in 1 Broadway musical (drawn from a play with songs by Christopher Bond that hed seen at London's Theatre Royal Stratford East) and rewrote i into nothing short of Cannibalism - the Musical, He made it not just palatable but a giddy pleasure by raising laughter amid the slaughter: Singing usually lows everything down, but despite 80 per cent ofthe show being sung, Sondheim pulled off the considerable trick of keeping everything tense. Most musicals are low on engaging plot but Sweeney wonderfully taut with huge, unexpected plot reveals. Iemore than lives up to its subtitle‘ Masical Thrill That thrilling tension derives from Sondheimis extraordinarily dynamic musical storytelling beginning with the chorus whose driving, threatening The Ballad of Sweeney Todd’ ~a reworking of the traditional Dies Irae (day of wrath) plainchant ~ opens ed throughout. This helps narrate the tale ofthe brutal barber. Fifteen years carer, he was transported to Australia by a judge who, lusting after Swweeneys wife, sent him away for a crime the show and is then threa he didat commit. As the show begins, Sweeney returns to Fleet Street with a new name and a mind bent on nd he and Mrs Lovett hatch a plan which comes within a whisker of success, revenge. Musically, Sondheim blends all manner of slements, He was intent upon creating the stage equivalent of ‘horror movie, its mood stemming from Bernard Hermanns score forthe 1945 chiller Ha M ‘orice in one day, rushed home and then played on the are ~ which 15-year-old Sondheim experienced plano, His writing for Mrs Lovett (created by Angela Lansbury) derives from musical comedy; the muse for ‘Sweeney himself's more operatic, He binds all these highly coloured, atmospheric elements together into ‘what is arguably his masterpiece, is cumulative power made plain by the dazzling second half of Act One The judge’ gullt-and-lust- filed solo ‘Johanna’ slides into the you wers escape duet, Kiss Me. Thats immediately followed by a duet for the beadle walking the judge to Sweeney's shop in ‘Ladies in Their Sensitivities: Those duets are then combined into a thrilling quartet ~ described by the late opera critic Rodney Milnes as the finest since Rigo “Pretty Women the serene but danger-fled duct = before between the judge in the barbers chair and Sweeney Wielding his ra: Atte last second, the judg escapes and Sweeney explodes with rage in his fiercely soul baring ‘Epiphany, before Mrs Lovett lassoes him into hr dastardly plan in the thyme-fest fist-act finale. That unstoppable succession of numbers alone would secure Sondheim’ status as the master Whichever way you slice it, Sweeney Todd is a gory glory and was the single biggest gamble of Sondheim’s career usin M95% Assassins (1990) FT eectety cms toy orp single most thrilling moment in Assassins is tiny carly charged-up moment ofsllence, In The Gun Song, Charles Guiteas, the deluded man ‘who shot James Garfield, the 20th President of the United States, Brandishes a gun and sings, to a surprisingly jaunty waltz melody: ‘What a wonder Isa gun! / What a versatile invention! / First ofall, when you'vea gun sips the theatre as he aims the gun directly at terrified " At which point shocked silence audience members, before triumphantly singing Everybody pay’ attention: Ina country (now even more than when the show ‘opened) tearing itself apart over gun culture, that moment and its release of relieved laughter afterwards, perfectly conceived and crafted by Sondhelm, ilustrates his musical command of drama - and “Assassins has plenty ofthat. Like! but where the earlier show was a scintillating study ‘of fear of matrimony, Sondheim and his bookwriter John Weldman up the stakes considerably in thelr small but mighty study of malice aforethought Their unlkely-sounding musical isa cross between 4 rogues gallery anda shooting gallery, portraying the terefying, logical conclusion of American pany, its plotless, individualism. Oras the opening song pus it, IFyou keep your goal insight You can climb to any height / Everybody's got the right / To their dreams! TG) Henry Goodman and Anthony Barclay in Sam Mendes's Assassins at the Donmar Warehouse, 1992, and the production poster 66 Assassins asks us not to sympathise with its gun-toting outcasts but to consider why they did what they did 99 A wonderfully compact, increasingly vivid, ‘one-act theatrical song cycle of illusions and dalusions, Assassins has an unasually mordant tone ‘hich is scarcely surprising since the principal ca ‘comprises nine disparate people who have assassinated (or attempted to assassinate) American presidents, But far from excusing thelr helnous behaviou, the piece holds theit motives and behaviour up to beady: eyed scrutiny, seeking to explain what spurred them and what in American culture made it posible, Its 100 years of history are reflected by an equivalent panorama of period styles of American music, There are folk songs from the Southern hills and snatches of John Philip Sousa marches, especially Hall to the Chief. The later, the oficial Presidential Anthem of the United States, operates as a theme throughout and opens the show asa seductive waltz, played on a calliope to set up the carnival atmosphere. There ate conscious echoes of Stephen Foster’ songwriting: ‘Aaron Copland-style fourth and filth intervals are pt to dramatic use in bold accompaniments; “The Gun Song! even uses the ultra-American form ofthe barbershop quartet to deliciously ironic effect. ‘Misguided though its characters were and Assassins i definitely character based ~ most of them die what they did out of some form of ove, albeit hideously warped. Asa result, the seore is unafraid to wear its heart on its sleeve, though in seemingly unlikely ways. Sondheim supplies a beguiling, i i i I l | i