Review by Daz Gale
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A renaissance is happening in the world of musical theatre with the rise of the musical concert. These special events allow shows who are rarely revived or who have never made it to the UK to be seen by a new audience, and can sometimes lead to full West End runs. The latest and one of the most exciting addition to this impressive list is the long awaited UK premiere of Something Rotten! West End audiences have been dying to get a taste of this for a long time now, so expectations were high for this debut. Would it be able to be (or not to be) eggscellent?
Premiering on Broadway in 2015, the long awaited UK premiere of Something Rotten! was due to take place in Birmingham in 2020 but it doesn’t take Nostradamus to see why that didn’t happen. Now crossing the pond to take over Theatre Royal Drury Lane for two days in “concert” form (We all know how loosely the word concert can be applied to shows like this), could this be the start of a long and loving relationship with British audiences?
Set in 1595, Something Rotten! tells the story of two Bottoms (no, it’s not THAT kind of show), brothers Nick and Nigel, whose attempts to succeed in theatre are always eclipsed by that of the rock star that is William Shakespeare. In a desperate bid to beat the Bard, they enlist the help of the lesser-known Nostradamus to write the world’s first musical. And thus begins the greatest show Shakespeare never wrote (yet) - the classic that is ‘Omelette’. If you’re unsure what that would entail, think of all-singing, all-dancing eggs in a sequence you never knew you needed to see on the Theatre Royal Drury Lane stage… until now.
While Something Rotten! had legions of lovers prior to this concert production, I went into it having never heard any of the songs or really knowing much about it apart from its basic premise. To say I was blown away would be an understatement. Karey Kirkpatrick and John O’Farrell’s book is wickedly funny with a comedy hit rate most shows could only dream of. It may not boast the most complex of plots ever but it still manages to carefully weave some semblance of a story, while crucially never forgetting the laughs. For a show so unashamedly stupid, the intelligence in the crafting of this humour is joyful to see – I can’t recall the last time I laughed that hard and so often at the theatre in what I consider to be the single funniest show I have seen since The Book Of Mormon many moons ago.
Wayne Kirkpatrick and Karey Kirkpatrick’s music and lyrics match the tone of the story effortlessly. While the characters may chastise the necessity to start singing randomly in a musical and question whether this adds anything to the story, that is not a problem in Something Rotten! with each musical number delighting and matching the top quality set from the hilarious book. With plenty of references to other shows, the numbers manage to be familiar and fresh while never falling into parody territory. Crucially standing up on their own right, the collection of songs present are a glorious collection with opening number ‘Welcome To the Renaissance’ perfectly setting the tone. The show-stoppers come thick and fast with the rousingly brilliant ‘A Musical’ and huge highlight ‘Make An Omelette’, the numbers never fail to raise a smile and ensure they match the dialogue by never being too far away from the next yolk… sorry, I mean joke.
Previous concerts such as Bonnie & Clyde, Death Note and the fittingly titled Your Lie In April took a great deal of artistic licence when it came to what can be classed as a concert. While Something Rotten! boasts an incredibly bustling stage full of the London Musical Theatre Orchestra conducted by Freddie Tapner and London Musical Theatre Chorus, threatening to collapse under the weight of such enormous talent, that is where the similarities to a concert end. They may have borrowed the Frozen stage for a couple of days so aren’t exactly able to melt Arendelle but they make up for it with the inspired and intricate direction.
Tim Jackson’s direction ensures Something Rotten! is always, to quote another Shakespeare starring musical, larger-than-life. With playful choices, don’t expect the cast to stand still and sing at all. Instead they will bounce around as if this was a fully staged production, with Jackson’s choreography impressing at every turn (and let’s not even talk about the brilliant panography as well). The choices are big and the performances match this, with Rebecca Brower’s costumes meticulous in their design. Some of these concerts can be dogged with sound problems which threaten to ruin the execution of the show. While there were one or two minor issues early on, these were immediately rectified and never detracted from the show, with Tom Marshall and Sebastian Frosts’s sound design never daring to get anything close to rotten.
These concerts can provide something of a dream cast and in Something Rotten!, some of the greatest talents in stage and screen have gathered to make it near on impossible to single out any highlights. Jason Manford has talked about his love for this show and trying to bring it to the West End for years, and that passion and dedication is clear to see in his performance. As lead character Nick Bottom, he charms and captivates with a cheeky yet loving performance that always has one wink to the audience. A hilarious moment involving a fluffed line showcases Manford’s humour and leading to one of the unexpected funniest moments of the night. An absolute star on that stage, he delivers an exceptional performance while never attempting to take the limelight away from his equally amazing co-stars.
Cassius Hackforth delights as Nick’s sweet but naïve younger brother Nigel in a charismatic performance. His scenes with love interest Portia, wonderfully played by Evelyn Hoskins, are highlughts of the night with the two showing a gorgeous chemistry. Jenna Boyd thrills as Lady Croydon while Cameron Blakely is a comic highlight as Brother Jeremiah, making the most of his limited stage time by leaving a lasting impression and eye-balling the audience in a way that has not been seen since Patti Lupone. The always sensational Marisha Wallace has a full circle moment, having starred in Something Rotten! on Broadway by taking on the meatier role of Bea and leaving the audience in stitches with her exceptional comic timing and, of course, inimitable vocals, blowing us away with standout musical number ‘Right Hand Man’.
Gary Wilmot delivered a masterclass performance in comedy as Nostradamus, clearly having the time of his life in his role and always giving the sense he was moments away from bursting into laughter himself with an infectious level of fun and energy. His delivery of showstopper ‘A Musical’ truly was a joy to behold. Though every cast member was exceptional in this production, when it comes to the most memorable, that honour has to go to Richard Fleeshman for his brilliantly over-the-top and genius portrayal of Shakespeare. Leaning in to the exaggerated stupidity of the role, he delivered one of the greatest comedic performance I have ever had the pleasure of seeing. He also showcases out of this world vocals with a rip-roaringly funny ‘Hard To Be The Bard’ a musical highlight of the evening.
With more musical theatre references than you can throw an egg at, Something Rotten! isn’t so much a love letter to theatre as it is a love omelette to theatre. Getting the tone right with musical references to ensure they’re actually funny is a tough one to ahem crack, but the way they delivered it here was nothing short of eggstraordinary. An endless barrage of refereces including costumes in ‘Make An Omelette’ is one of the single best sequences I’ve ever seen and had me literally in fear of my sides splitting from incessant laughter.
In an increasingly terrifying world, theatre at its best can provide you with pure escapism, before you step outside and return to scrambling away. This is where Something Rotten! truly shines. This show knows what it wants to do and that is give audiences a couple of hours of fun, forgetting their troubles and making them laugh like they have never laughed before. Job well done, I’d say. This may have been my first experience with Something Rotten! but after being blown away by this performance, I hope it’s not my last – though you don’t have to be Nostradamus to see that this show very clearly has a big future in the UK. After all, the West End is crying out for a show as unashamedly joyous and silly as this and any opportunity to brighten people’s lives is very much welcome. With that in mind, don’t be surprised if a West End theatre poaches this in the near future. One of the most joyous experiences I have ever had in the theatre, this isn’t so much Something Rotten as it is Something Special.
Something Rotten! – In Concert played at Theatre Royal Drury Lane on 5th & 6th August. Keep an eye out to see if this show returns.
Photos by Pamela Raith
This was a fantastic read. Very informative! Solar