Cut
to the Chase at
the
Queen's Theatre, Hornchurch
30.08.2012
Bit
of a boom time for Shakespeare's Tempest – featured in both
Stratford opening ceremonies, and now in Hornchurch. True, there are
two degrees of separation here, in the Bard's cult rock and roll
musical Return to the Forbidden Planet, directed by its onlie
begetter, the Queen's Theatre's Artistic Director Bob Carlton.
It's
a fun show for all the family, brash and noisy, but witty and clever,
too. To get the best out of it, you need a working knowledge of the
Shakespeare canon, plus a record collection stretching back to
Dansette days.
Who
better to bring it back to the stage than the resident company of
actor/musicians, Cut to the Chase, whose Moliere/Porter musical was
such a success last year.
We
start with a bit of mingling, checking the bags and the beer, warming
up for the Polarity Reversal routine, distributing those little blue
pills – the in-flight catering for the Starship Albatross. Then
it's into the playlist and the iambic pentameters as we blast off
into outer space to the tune of Telstar, with stylophone obbligato.
The last words spoken on stage are from Henry VI part 3, just before
The Byrds' Mr Spaceman. Which gives you some idea of the cultural
juxtapositions going on.
Richard
O'Brien is the celebrity on celluloid this time round, giving us a
prologue, a recap and a Puckish epilogue. Other familiar faces, at
least in Havering, are Simon Jessop's Bosun Arras, and Natasha
Moore's teenage Miranda. James Earl Adair brought gravitas as well as
a sense of fun to Mad Scientist Dr Prospero, Jane Milligan was
outstanding as the ball-breaking Science Officer, and it was a joy to
see Fredrick "Frido" Ruth reprise his role as the robotic
Ariel – dancing, playing sax, roller skating – his "Who's
Sorry Now" was the stand-out number for me. He also
choreographed the show – the slomo weightless sequence was
entertainingly ingenious.
Two
newcomers in the company – Sean Needham's pipe-smoking Dan Dare
figure, the dauntless Captain Tempest, and Mark Newnham's Cookie. An
amazing performance this – convincing as the "simple homespun
lad" who woos Miranda, but a great musician too, giving us a
visceral, virtuosic guitar solo.
The
beat is powered by dual drum-kits either side of the stage; MD Greg
Last directed his musicians from the flight deck above the action, as
well as singing and playing. But in this company, everyone is
multi-talented, so we hear Prospero on tambourine for Good
Vibrations, and Miranda on flute for Georgie Fame's Yeh Yeh.
Rodney
Ford's design, though not without glitz, captures the B-movie feel,
and the "wonderful tackiness" of the original, exemplified
by the hair-dryer ray-guns.
The
Hornchurch audience loved it – their rapturous ovation was rewarded
with a modest megamix encore set that stayed just the right side of
self-indulgent …
photo by Nobby Clark
photo by Nobby Clark
this piece first appeared on The Public Reviews
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