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Fun, glorious, fun
Phoebe Coupe as Jolene, Geraldine
Fitzgerald as Muriel, Noel Sullivan as Freddy, Michael Praed as
Lawrence, Carley Stenton as Christine and Mark Benton
as Andre
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels - The musical
The New Alexandra theatre
*****
THIS is a show that goes way beyond feel
good, it has a feel, bloody marvellous factor. It is quite simply fun,
glorious fun from its opening bars to its closing standing ovation.
Based on the 1988 film starring Steve Martin and
Michael Caine – and a lot of people do know that – it is slick,
glamorous, fast paced, witty, smutty with style and packed with laughs.
There isn’t a weak character or indeed
performance as we enter the world of the Riviera con man, suave,
sophisticated, handsome, debonair etc, etc - you get the picture -
Lawrence Jameson, played with some wonderful humorous asides and touches
by Michael Praed showing a marvellous bent for comedy.
In his pocket, and
helping fill them, is Andre Thibault, th e
chief of police and chief accomplice in Lawrence’s heart rending sob
stories designed to relieve the rich and attractive ladies of at least
some of their wealth. As Lawrence explains, it is a matter of
Give Them What They Want.
It is a splendid comic performance from Mark
Benton, French accent and all, who shows some neat footwork – he reached
week 10 in Strictly remember – wonderful timing and a fine voice. And
who can resist a show that has Mark Benton twerking!
Muriel and Andre, true love blossoming among the lies
and deception
Into their urbane world of wealth comes the
upstart New Yorker, hustler Freddy Benson, little more than a two bit
swindler, scraping by on a few dollars conned here and there. It is a
wonderfully entertaining performance from Noel Sullivan, who is in fine
voice and full of fun.
Freddy and Lawrence form a bond, of sorts, a
€50,000 bond actually, which involves The Soap Queen of America,
Christine Colgate, the target of their rivalry for both cash and, it
turns out, affections.
Carley Stenson is carving out a career for
herself in musical theatre, after her decade as Steph Cunningham in
Hollyoaks and this performance as the sweet innocent Christine can only
enhance her growing reputation. She has the looks, the voice and can act
and dance, and you can’t ask for more.
While Lawrence and
Freddy battle over Christine an unlikely romance is blossoming between
Andre and one of Lawrence’s early marks, Muriel Eubanks who find love is
Like Zis/Like Zat.
She is wealthy, from
Surrey and with a pathologic need to volunteer and do good, and elicits
a fine performance from Geraldine Fitzgerald, who perhaps explains the
dilemma of all Lawrence’s victims in the bittersweet
What was a woman to do.
As a diversion from
Lawrence’s smooth progress through life by seduction and deception
Phoebe Coupe provides a touch of scene stealing as oil heiress Jolene
Oakes, six-gun toting and with two former husbands, the last two of many
we suspect, who have “not yet been legally declared dead”. Her
Oklahoma? is
a long way from Rodgers and Hammerstein but it is great fun.
Amid the constant
deceptions we drift into slapstick to meet Austrian therapist Dr.
Shuffhausen, a wheelchair bound Sergeant with a dance related psychosis
preventing him walking in a wonderfully funny storyline.
Perhaps
 daftest
of all we are introduced to Lawrence’s brother Ruprecht, kept in a
cellar and not so much a sandwich short but a whole hamper short of the
proverbial picnic. All About Ruprecht
is the funniest number in the show.
Dr. Shuffhausen, who bears a
remarkable similarity to Lawrence, a paralyzed Sergeant who resembles
Freddy and the gullible Christine
Not that there are not
the odd serious moments, such as Lawrence’s
Love Sneaks In
as he finds himself falling for Christine and, against all his
principles, doing the decent thing.
There is good support from a strong ensemble and
some stylish choreography, including a line dance, from director Jerry
Mitchell.
With a book by Jeffrey Lane and music and lyrics
by David Yazbek there is a strong, laugh a minute, storyline, a happy
ending, unless you are a Greek millionaire, and good music which lay the
foundations for a solid show.
Which brings us to the other stars, the excellent
10 piece band under musical director Ben Van Tienen. What a difference
it makes to put some numbers in the pit to give a big full sound.
A mention too for a glorious, inventive and
elegant set from Peter McKintosh, with Art Deco scenes silently gliding
in and out, up and down without a break and it was all beautifully lit
by Howard Harrison.
It was a feather in the cap for the Alex to be
chosen to launch this touring production and, even though Press night
was only the second performance, it is a show that has already built a
nice, natural rhythm, so catch it while you can. To 16-05-15
Roger Clarke
06-05-15
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