Tag Archives: Chichester Festival Theatre

The Butterfly Lion: Review

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The Butterfly Lion
Minerva Theatre, Chichester
Until 15 November
www.cft.org.uk

Photo credit: Manuel Harlan

Theatrical storytelling at its finest, the importance of treasuring memories is a central theme in this superb adaptation of Michael Morpurgo’s book – a theme that is perfectly reflected in Simon Higlett’s dreamy set. Enhanced by a crack creative team (lighting by Johanna Town, sound by Gregory Clarke and video by Simon Wainright), the play’s journey, which traverses the wilds of South Africa to rural England and the battlefields of France, is a collective design triumph.

Jonathan Dryden Taylor as Michael Morpurgo himself is the story’s guide. Meandering down memory lane, his narration melts seamlessly into the action, sweeping you along for the ride and inspiring a sense of old snapshots coming to life.

All the performances are accomplished. With skill beyond their years the youngsters playing the junior versions of the adult characters don’t miss so much as the subtlest nuance.

The adult cast, many of whom play multiple roles, are equally adept. Effortlessly slipping from character to character, the scenes at the watering hole, in which they take on animal personas, are especially impressive.

Director Dale Rooks has invested such care that not even the smallest detail falls short. Making it feel as if you are watching a labour of love rather than simply an extremely polished production; her Butterfly Lion has palpable heart and soul. It makes the heart sing.

Complemented by Tom Brady’s atmospheric music, Anna Ledwich’s adaption is sensitively and elegantly done. Clearly meeting with the approval of the book’s author, who on Press Night was in the audience, Mr Morpurgo looked proud fit to burst. He deserved to.

Review: The Midnight Gang, Chichester Festival Theatre

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The Midnight Gang, Chichester Festival Theatre
Until 3 November. Box Office: 01243 781312 www.cft.org.uk

Never knowingly understated, David Walliams took his seat to loud applause from the audience on press night. By the curtain call, when he praised the cast and creative team behind the adaptation of his book, the cheers practically took the roof off. Quite right too. His story didn’t just jump from page to stage, it took flight – literally.

Set in Lord Funt Hospital, Matron rules the children’s ward with a rod of iron. A rod of iron dipped in cement and covered in titanium. Looking like Doris Day but without a glimmer of sunshine in her soul, her young patients know the risk they are running in escaping her clutches to indulge in secret midnight antics.

Aided and abetted by the hospital’s porter, superbly played by Dickon Gough (was it just my imagination or were there shades of Walliams in there?), the poorly children live out their wildest fantasies, reminding us that when something we yearn for is out of reach, dreams can be the next best thing.

The children are fabulous. We saw Cody Molko as Tom, Jasmine Sakyiama as Amber, Rafi Essex as George, Felix Warren as Robin and Cerys Hill as Sally, but I gather that their opposite numbers (Tumo Reetsang, Albi Stisted, Cooper Snow, Fibian McKenzie and Anjali Shah) are every bit as talented.

Jenny Dale is a glorious gorgon as Matron. With the bedside manner of Nurse Ratched, her swooning over Tom’s headmaster (Tim Mahendran) during The Punishment Will be Severe is one of many highlights.

With lovely performances also from Lucy Vandi, Matthew Cavendish and Marilyn Cutts, lots of doubling up means that the cast appears bigger than the reality. Collectively they manage quick changes – of costume and character – with impressive and seamless speed.

Simon Higlet’s ingenious set is a joy, full of surprises and magical elements. Music by Joe Stilgoe provides agreeable accompaniment, but it is words rather than music that are his greater accomplishment. Astute, witty and dexterous, notably in So Many Questions which sees a beleaguered doctor trying to fill out an admission form, his sparkling lyrics are marvellous.

Tender, funny and thrilling, Bryony Lavery’s adaptation retains all the heart and humour of Williams’ book and sprinkles precisely the right amount of theatrical magic into the story.

Director Dale Rooks is to be congratulated. A stunning show for all the family, The Midnight Gang is an absolute tonic. I urge you to get dosed up.

From a child’s perspective – Lily B (14) says:

The Midnight Gang is an action-packed story with memorable characters. Comedic, cheering and cleverly staged, especially with the flight of a naked grandma, Matron was my favourite. Child-hating, chocolate loving and power crazed, she was the perfect love-to-hate character. A great show for children and their families, I especially liked the messages to let your imagination run free and to be kind to each other. Definitely five stars!

Review: Flowers For Mrs Harris at Chichester Festival Theatre

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Photo: Johan Persson

Until 29 September

Box Office: 01243 781312

cft.org.uk

You might not go home humming the tunes, but what Flowers for Mrs Harris lacks in catchy songs is more than made up for in warmth and charm.

An elegant retelling of one of Paul Gallico’s much-loved series of books, there’s not a great deal of colour to in Ada’s life. Set in the post-war 1940s, a gossip over a cuppa with her friend and fellow charlady Violet Butterfield and a bottle of milk stout once a week is about as bright as things get.

‘Doing’ for he clients by day, always giving them added value in kindness, wisdom and good old fashioned common sense, by night she conjures up the company of her late husband at the kitchen table of their rented Battersea home. Falling in love with a Christian Dior gown while cleaning for a well-to-do lady (“a dress to make you feel”), she vows to work for as long as it takes to save for such a frock of her own. Helped by Violet, the next two years are filled with purposeful drudgery. Sustained by the mental image of her fairy tale dress, she toils day and night, cleaning, mending and reassuring.

It is a story that could easily become saccharine-sweet and mawkish, but director Daniel Evans (who directed the production as his swansong at Sheffield’s Crucible Theatre – and where it won three UK Theatre Awards – before taking up the reigns at Chichester), gets the balance absolutely right.

The characters may be larger than life, but they are rooted firmly in truth, imbuing the narrative with credibility and humour. If the first half drags its feet somewhat then the second flies, which is apt given that post-interval is when we see Ada taking the second step toward her dream and reaching France.

 

Photo: Johan Persson

Clare Burt reprises her role as Mrs Harris. It is easy to see why she won ‘Best Performance in a Musical’ on her previous outing. With a perfect blend of dignity, empathy, wit and sweetness, she shines like a basking sunflower.

The cast cleverly doubles for the action on both sides of the channel. Accomplished performances throughout, Gary Wilmot is especially memorable and versatile in a number of guises and Claire Machin is a hoot as both Violet and her French counterpart.

An elegantly told and beautifully staged story of hope, aspiration and simple kindness, Flowers for Mrs Harris will lift your spirits and leave you feeling blooming marvellous.

 

Chichester’s triple threat… Review: The Norman Conquests

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The Norman Conquests
Chichester Festival Theatre
Until 28 October
Box office: 01243 781312
www.cft.org.uk

Photo by Manuel Harlan

Three interconnecting plays, Alan Ayckbourn’s cleverly conceived trilogy gets the red carpet treatment in this excellent revival. While seeing all three provides the complete story, Ayckbourn wrote each play as a standalone, so you don’t lose out if you’re only in town for an evening. But there are several dates when the marathon triple bill can be seen and, if you possibly can, take your seat for the longer haul.

Fabulously staged (a first for Chichester is the addition of on-stage seating, thus creating a full in-the-round experience); the setting is a rambling country house and garden in Sussex where Annie (Jemima Rooper) lives and looks after her ailing mother. Desperate for some much-needed fun (in the absence of local nice-but-dim vet Tom putting the moves on her), she plans a dirty weekend away with her incorrigible brother-in-law, Norman (Trystan Gravelle). The arrival of her brother Reg (Jonathan Broadbent) and sister-in-law Sarah (Sarah Hadland), followed by eldest sister – Norman’s wife – Ruth (Hattie Ladbury) puts paid to Annie’s plans. The collective convergence also unleashes fall-outs, flirtations and some enthusiastic hurling of home truths.

Taking place over the course of a weekend, in the first play, ‘Table Manners,’ the action takes place in the dining room. In ‘Living Together’ we relocate to the sitting room to see what has been going on in the meantime. Finally we catch up on the outdoors action (and oh boy there’s plenty of it!) in the concluding ‘Round and Round the Garden.’

Making her Chichester debut, Blanche McIntyre directs. Written and set in 1973 (superb design and detail from Simon Higlett), while the period is evident, McIntyre injects a sense of newness; vintage Ayckbourn with a contemporary twist.

Without exception the performances are polished. Delivering beautifully played comedy while highlighting the foibles and struggles of their individual characters, there is a pleasing synchronisation between the actors that aids the flow of the entire trilogy.

Very funny, neatly done and with moments of sharp poignancy, this is a hugely satisfying three-course theatrical feast.

Review: Ross at Chichester Festival Theatre

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ROSS by Rattigan, , Writer - Terence Rattigan, Director - Adrian Noble, Designer - William Dudley, Lighting - Paul Pyant, Chichester Festival Theatre, 2016, Credit: Johan Persson/ayiinROSSatChichesterFestivalTheatrePhotobyJohanPersson.

Joseph Fiennes leads the cast in in Terence Rattigan’s bio-drama about TE Lawrence

Photographs: Johan Persson

When it comes to writing repressed and complex characters Rattigan is something of a dab hand. The life of TE Lawrence, therefore, gives him plenty to work with.

The story is well known, not least thanks to David Lean’s epic (if not strictly accurate) movie, Lawrence of Arabia. But while the play is light on Hollywood glitz, the writing is pure class. Rattigan’s account of how Lawrence (who was routinely beaten as a child and was a repressed homosexual) rose from being a civilian in the Map Office to a celebrity who led the unconventional but effective 1916-18 Arab Revolt against the Turks is both compelling and disturbing.

The play opens in a far less exotic setting than the Middle East. Having chosen to hide himself away from public scrutiny by assuming a false name and joining the lowly ranks of the RAF, at a base in Uxbridge Aircraftman ‘Ross’ is being charged with insubordination.

Asked to explain his unauthorised absence of the previous night, his insistence that he was dining with Lord and Lady Astor, The Arch Bishop of Canterbury and Mr and Mrs George Bernard Shaw is deemed outrageous cheek. But while his superiors don’t believe him, one of his fellows does. Having assured himself of Ross’s real identity, the opportunity for blackmail is too easy to resist. Cue the beginning of Lawrence’s Arabian story, told through a malaria-induced flashback.

Designer William Dudley uses every inch of Chichester’s thrust stage to evoke the sense of desert expanse, with occasional black and white film footage aiding historical context.

There is much to admire in Adrian Noble’s polished production, but one of the greatest joys is the casting. Without a single ‘slightly less than’ contribution, the overall result is absolutely cohesive and effortlessly fluid.

Joseph Fiennes is superb. Perfectly judging Lawrence’s complexities and contradictions, every nuance is beautifully captured.

Michael Feast is terrifyingly brilliant as the Turkish Military Governor (his vile orders being audibly carried out make for uncomfortable listening and saw theatre-goers shifting awkwardly in their seats), while Paul Freeman as General Allenby and Peter Polycarpou Sheik Auda Abu Tayi also achieve gear changes between light and shade with dexterity and conviction. But it is undeniably a magnificent Team Effort.

A maverick, the conquering hero, an intellectual who was profoundly driven, what is perhaps most interesting about the Lawrence story is the essence of the man himself; someone plagued by demons who waged their own war on him. And someone who longed, more than anything, to fit in and belong.

Highly recommended and with a short run, this ticket looks likely to be as hot as desert sand. Get in quick.

Until 25 June. Box Office: 01243 781312 www.cft.org.uk

A Damsel In Distress, Chichester Festival Theatre – review

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Photo credit Johan Persson

Photo credit Johan Perssonzpfile000

A Damsel In Distress
Chichester Festival Theatre
Until 27 June
Box office: 01243 781312
www.cft.org.uk

Gad zukes! What a delightful piece of froth! Perfect for summer, especially given the Festival Theatre’s glorious setting (what could be jollier than a pre-theatre G&T in the park?), the 1930s novel by PG Wodehouse initially adapted as a play, and later as a film for which Gershwin composed songs, enjoys new life as a stage musical by Jeremy Sams and Robert Hudson.

A topping blend of music, song and ripping fun, the story is about as daft as they come. Maud, a headstrong 1920s English rose, is locked in the tower of a stately home and guarded by her dragon of an aunt who is determined to prevent her niece marrying a penniless poet. But it’s an American theatre director who is smitten with the girl. If he can’t sleigh the dragon then he’s set on shoving her out of the way so that he can at least declare his heart. Spamalot meets Downton Abbey. But with more tap dancing.

Marshalling the whole charming caboodle, Rob Ashford directs and choreographs. The score may not be the most memorable in the world, but a cast of ace singers and dancers give it all they’ve got, adding plenty of visual fizz as they belt and hoof with as much infectious enthusiasm as dazzling skill. Clutching mops, rakes, and even oversized quivering jellies, routines are high octane and high camp.

It’s a terrific team effort but Isla Blair as fire-breathing Lady Caroline is a splendid battle-axe. Richard Fleeshman as George and Summer Strallen as the feisty ‘damsel’ of the title are in superb voice, while Nicholas Farrell as the aging lord of the manor who rediscovers his va va vroom when he meets showgirl Billie (a warm and effortlessly sexy Sally Ann Triplett) is gloriously funny. Delighted to have found a siren who not only has a cleavage like the Rhonda Valley but who also shares his passion for pigs and roses, the pair provide some of the production’s most uproarious moments.

Further comedic expertise is demonstrated by Desmond Barrit as butler Keggs, and also David Roberts. Managing to switch roles between Perkins the theatre director and Pierre the highly strung chef, as the latter Roberts inspires yet more laughter. Richard Dempsey meanwhile is adorable as dim toff Reggie.

Designed by Christopher Oram, the set, as Reggie would say, is bally clever. Revolving rose gardens and castle turrets cunningly morph into the stage at the Savoy and the kitchen of a stately home.

Chekov it ain’t. Brilliantly executed blissful nonsense it most definitely is. Don’t be a frightful clot – book tickets today!

Way Upstream by Alan Ayckbourn at Chichester Festival Theatre

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Credit: Simon Annand

Credit: Simon Annand

When a play requires a river, a tree-lined bank and a floating motor cruiser as its set, it’s destined to be seldom performed. But Chichester Festival Theatre doesn’t scare easily when it comes to technical challenges and Nadia Fall’s extraordinary production of Alan Ayckbourn’s dark comedy easily meets the play’s epic technical demands.

With most of the action taking place onboard Hadforth Bounty the first half is where the laughs are to be had. Keith and June have taken to the water with colleagues and business partners Alastair and Emma for a jolly waterways holiday. Trouble on dry land back at their novelty goods factory sees PA Mrs Hatfield (Nicola Sloane) having to show up bankside with daily updates. Brash and self-important, Keith (Peter Forbes) quickly nominates himself as captain, while his disgruntled wife June (Sarah Parish) carps, huffs and idles. Lily-livered Alastair (Jason Hughes) and his timid missus Emma (Jill Halfpenny) end up doing the bulk of the graft, resentment building like a slowly developing tidal wave.

But the sit-com feel and the jokes at the expense of well-drawn middle-class characters give way to altogether nastier themes. With the arrival of Vince (Jason Durr), a savvy and seemingly harmless bit of eye candy who does, unlike the novice sailors, at least seem to know how to avoid capsizing, initial barbed teasing swiftly degenerates into disturbing casual cruelty, punctuated only by drunken revels and sexual shenanigans. Manipulating Keith off the boat to go and deal with the threat of strike action back at the factory, Vince introduces minxy Fleur (Emily Laing) into the equation, all the while ramping up the intimidation and spite.

As Ayckbourn highlights the consequences of power in the wrong hands and the fallout of perpetual feebleness, the laughter from the audience gets increasingly nervous.

Fabulously played, the performances are all stunningly good; not even Ben Stones gloriously clever set, beautifully lit by Tim Mitchell, can upstage this superb cast.

An odd but nevertheless compelling play, the launch of the 2015 Festival season at Chichester makes an impressive splash.

Until 16 May. Box office: 01243 781312; www.cft.org.uk

Vicky Edwards