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Riding the nostalgia highway
Carnaby Street Malvern Theatres **** Based on
producer Carl Leighton-Pope’s own memories and experiences of the 1960s
London music scene,
Carnaby Street is a
jukebox musical featuring almost forty hits of the time.
With co-writer Robert Johns, Leighton-Pope aims
to recreate the mood and colour of the Swinging 60s, basing characters
on people he met in his years working at The Marquee Club before opening
his own recording studio and moving into management. With a full live band, sassy sashaying brass
section, fabulous lighting and an exceedingly talented cast, I’d say
Leighton-Pope has achieved what he set out to do, and the cast and
audience had a thoroughly enjoyable night, as did Leighton-Pope, who
chatted to audience members in the interval and stood at the exit at the
end of the evening to shake hands and share others’ reminiscences of
that same era. The show begins by inviting the audience to sing
or clap along to any of the songs, and a lively opening number promises
to take us back to the 60s and all of its variety. Matthew Wright’s set
is spot on and his costumes are fabulous, with mod fashions recreated
and suits, mini-skirts and knee length boots all the rage. Even the
souvenir program has been lovingly created in the guise of a vinyl album
inside its sleeve. Directed by Bob Tomson (Dreamboats and
Petticoats), Carnaby Street follows two young Liverpudlians,
Jude and Penny, hoping to make their way and earn their fortune on the
gold-paved streets of Soho. Jude (Jonny Bower) is soon tipped to be a huge
star and puts in some fine performances but for me the loyal and
unassuming Penny is the one deserving of any manager’s backing. Aimee
Atkinson plays Jude’s side-lined and lovelorn
Some of my favourite numbers from the show were
performed by Penny, from her melancholy Go Now to the fun and
catty Poison Ivy, sung with flamboyant stylist to the stars, Lil
(played marvellously by Paul Hazel). The other star of the show for me was Tricia
Adele-Turner who played the upper class and at first not particularly
likeable Jane. Again, she put in some fantastic vocal performances, and
whereas numbers such as I Only Want To Be With You were fun,
feel-good tunes, other songs like Anyone Who Had A Heart were
performed with more than a touch of real emotion.
There is always the danger with jukebox musicals
that plots are forced around the songs that are to be included, and
Carnaby Street does not escape from this entirely, although there
are humorous nods to this where the writers seem to appropriately
acknowledge this factor and then merrily carry on regardless. There are
for example a couple of instances where we can clearly see what tune is
coming but when the on-stage band picks up the obvious intro, characters
leave the stage or tell the band to stop. So although at times contrived
and not the deepest or most original plot line, I don’t imagine
audiences come to a production like this expecting great depths and
insight into the human condition. There are many characters in this production,
perhaps too many for us to get to know them well enough. Mark Pearce
plays the Jim Morrisson-esque Wild Thing and adds a slightly darker tone
with his addictions and rock attitude, and Aaron Sidwell puts in a
charming performance as manager and narrator Jack. Jack belts out a few good numbers, as does Hugo
Harold-Harrison’s Arnold, although I felt that Harold-Harrison’s talents
may not have been as appreciated as much as they should have been
because of the unpleasantness of his music mogul character. Incredibly
hackneyed at times, but regular appearances of newspaper vendor Al
(Gregory Clarke) added to the flavour of the 60s, with bad jokes and
headlines from the times. He reminded us of the hopes of Vietnam troops
that they’d be home by Christmas, and of the assassination of Malcolm X. Overall this show delivers what it promises to.
The entire cast seem to have great acting, dancing and musical ability
and Carole Todd’s choreography adds much to the production. I
particularly like the scene where three security guards are trying to
keep three enthusiastic female fans away from Jude, and the girls try
all kinds of moves to get past the minders. All of this is amusingly
portrayed in dance. Not my era, but a marvellous trip down memory
lane for some. Lil had everyone clapping along to Summertime Blues
and the finale had the entire audience on their feet, singing and
jigging along. Penny’s rendition of Shout, performed as an
encore, was brilliant, and I hope that Aimee Atkinson goes a long way.
To 23-11-13 Amy Rainbow
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friend
in an understated and endearing manner, which makes her excellent vocal
performances all the more striking.