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The Shakespeare Revue
Malvern Theatres
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THE 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s
death is the perfect opportunity to revive a revue that was originally
produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1993.
It enables the current production to select the
very best material from some of the most talented sketch and song
writers over decades and combine them into a programme that is hugely
entertaining. It revives a theatrical tradition that has largely
transferred to our television screens.
The team of Lizzie Bea, Jordan Lee Davies, Alex
Morgan, Alex Scott Fairley and Anna Stolli are multi-talented. They act,
they sing and they dance in various styles and in a quick-moving and
slick manner, they glide from sketch to sketch with great pace, humour
and energy.
Anna Stolli’s powerful
operatic voice in the sketch The
Heroine of the Opera House Forgot
and her subtle Shakespeare Masterclass with Alex Scott Fairley were
hugely entertaining elements in Part One of the programme along with
Jordan Lee Davies Giving Notes
to the cast of the Welsh amateur dramatic society.
The carnage of
Hamlet with
its endless death toll was brilliantly satirised in another sketch in
Part One. From Ophelia, Laertes and Polonius, to Gertrude, Hamlet,
Marcellus, Osric and Fortinbras, the list runs on and on and on. In
another The Man who speaks in Anagrams
is a challenge to actor and audience to keep pace with the verbal
dexterity of the writer.
In Part Two the challenges presented to the
Repertory Actor in remembering which night of the week it is and which
play they are performing is hilariously illustrated with the confusion
of Romeo seeking to woo Lady Macbeth in the Balcony scene with attendant
misunderstandings and innuendoes.
In
The English Lesson
the audience are drawn into participation and sing along in the Old
Music Hall style.
All the cast can sing though Lizzie Bea’s voice
is at times a trifle shrill. The harmonisations when they sang together
were very effective and they can all tap-dance as we discovered near the
end.
Nicola Keen‘s choreography was excellent and the
whole evening was swept along with clever lyrics and great use of music
and song. A few contemporary and local allusions were thrown in for good
measure – Trump and Clinton get a brief mention! The background
role of the talented Malcolm McKee as Musical Director and pianist is
crucial and combines with lighting effects to provide a light-hearted
and humorous experience that is greatly enhanced if you know your
Shakespeare!
Whatever our knowledge of the Bard, we are
reminded that we are all massively influenced by his creative use of our
language and are naturally and habitually using his turns of phrase
every day! Throughout the evening there is a sense of respect and
admiration for our greatest writer however much we enjoy taking the
mick! To 03-09-16.
Tim Crow
30-08-16
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