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This is the moment for Pellow
The dangers of drink: Nothing wet about Marti Pellow as he finds himself as Edward Hyde, your friendly, neighbourhood, homicidal maniac. Pictures: Simon Fowler Jekyll and Hyde – the musical Birmingham Hippodrome **** LOVE was
certainly all around the Hippodrome as Marti Pellow took to the stage as
Dr Henry Jekyll and Mr Edward Hyde and I suspect the standing ovation at
the end owed as much to his membership of
Wet Wet Wet
as his performance. Not that the pop icon, jazz singer, crooner
turned musical theatre star does not do an admirable job in his
portrayal of the dual roles. He apparently tailored the score to suit his
softer voice and it showed with every song sounding as if it was written
just for him. His transformation from the good doctor to the evil Hyde
was quite remarkable. We had none of the B-movie horror histrionics with
Jekyll clutching his throat and collapsing behind his workbench to
reappear moments later – depending upon the speed of the dresser – with
dishevelled wig, green eyes and false teeth. Instead Pellow created his
own monster. A look in a mirror, a dishevelling of the hair a
subtle change of posture and malice in the voice and evil was created
before your very eyes although in the first act Mr Hyde's diction was
not all it could have been. Thankfully that was much improved after the
half time oranges. If there was a fault it was that the audience
warmed more to the evil Hyde who had a bit of life and verve about him
and even a couple of funny lines instead of our hero Jekyll who was as
much fun as a bag of washing.
He never managed to show any warmth, passion or,
considering that was the reason why was sinking the funny pina coladas,
much in the way of compassion for his fellow man. It was all dull,
intense angst. It helped to distinguish the two characters I
suppose but I suspect the audience liking the homicidal nutter more than
the dullard doctor was not part of the plan. Lighten up Doc.
The musical is based, loosely, on Robert Louis
Stevenson's novella and sees our good doctor wanting to experiment on a
volunteer to first discover the source of good and evil then control the
evil bit to help the unfortunates in asylums and hospitals.
Supporting Pellow beautifully are the two female
leads Sarah Earnshaw as Jekyll's fiancé Emma and Sabrina Carter as the
tart with a heart Lucy. Their duet In His Eyes was one of the
highlights of the show along with the duet between Emma and Jekyll
Take Me As I Am, Lucy also gave us the beautiful Someone Like
You. Strangely the only hit song the show managed to
produce in what is a melodic and classy score by Leslie Bricusse and
Frank Wildhorn is Jekyll's This is the Moment which Pellow
delivered magnificently. The lad really has got a voice on him. It is a pity the music is not better known as it
really does have some cracking songs worthy of being standards. Emma's
Once Upon A Dream for example and Lucy's A New Life are
also lovely songs which deserve more than an airing every five or six
years in a touring production.
The chorus of ladies of the night from the
Spider's Web a pub where entertainment was more, should we say, basic in
the days long before Sky Sports was introduced also had their moments
with Lucy leading them in Bring on the Men and Nellie (Amira
Matthews) leading them in The Girls of the Night. Mention should also be made of excellent sets by
Mark Bailey which slide, rise and fall to make scene changes seamless
without any break - although, a small point, but Lucy's bed must
have had one of the world's first elasticated fitted sheets way back in
1886.
The lighting was also excellent to enhance the
gothic horror of the piece with an ever changing brooding behind the
London skyline and the costumes all added to the feel of Victorian
London. The show, which was a huge hit on Broadway in the 90s is not perfect. It is still looking for a London home and
its chances of an appearance in the West End would be helped
considerably by some pruning to a more manageable length which would
also help inject a little pace into what at times is pedestrian gothic. That being said though shortening and a light
touch on the accelerator would improve an already good production. The
18 strong cast put in a full shift, the singing and musical numbers were
all excellent and it was an enjoyable evening. Neither Wet Wet Wet fans
nor musical theatregoers will be disappointed. Roger Clarke But apart
from the drink what did you
think of it Doc? **** ACTORS frequently play
characters total different from themselves, but former pop star Marti
Pellow finds himself facing a double challenge in this horror story
musical. He has to switch from the good
Dr Jekyll to the evil Mr Edward Hyde, a murderous fiend with revenge on
his mind, and he achieves it with enough distinction to earn cheers from
the first night audience. Based on the short novel by
Robert Louis Stevenson, the plot explores how the doctor begins to
experiment on himself when the board of St Judes Hospital reject his
plea for backing to investigate whether good can be separated from bad
in man. But the potion he starts
taking transforms him into a vicious killer at a time when he is
preparing for marriage to his loving fiancee, Emma. In the switch to Hyde, without
the advantage of movie make-up, Pellow has to rely on a nasty
expression, a few greasy strands of hair covering part of his face, and
a top hat. Not always too scary, and there were a few giggles in the
audience at one of his murders. Big moments are plenty,
however, with Pellow singing This is the Moment with great passion, the
duet, In His Eyes, featuring Emma (Sarah Earnshaw) and pretty prostitute
Lucy (Sabrina Carter). Sabrina gives a stunning performance, too, with
the touching song, A New Life, as she prepares to escape the monster who
is attracted to her. One of the best props is a
full-sized mirror - Phantom style - which can reflect Dr Jekyll one
moment then show the vicious Hyde peering out in that top hat. Directed by Martin Connor with
Tom de Keyser's musical direction and keyboard skills, this story of
good and evil to music runs to Saturday night 09.04.11 Paul Marston
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