Tag Archives: Gareth Owen

The Prince of Egypt

★★★★

Dominion Theatre

ReviewsAdam Filipe, Adam Pearce, Addy Chan, Alexia Khadime, Alice Readie, Ann Hould-Ward, August Eriksmoen, Carly Miles, Casey Al-Shaqsy, Chris Fisher, Christian Alexander Knight, Christine Allado, Christopher Short, Danny Becker, Danny Williams, Dave Rose, Debbie Kurup, Dominic Gettins, Dominick Amendum, Dominion Theatre, Dreamworks, Felipe Bejarano, Gareth Owen, Gary Wilmot, J. Scott Lapp, Jack Harrison-Cooper, Jay Marsh, Jessica Lee, Joe Atkinson, Joe Dixon, Jon Driscoll, Kalene Jeans, Kevin Depinet, Lauren Storer, Liam Tamne, Lloyd Thomas, Luke Brady, Mark Collins, Mercedesz Csampai, Mike Billings, Molly Smith, Natalie Green, Niko Wirachman, Oliver Lidert, Pàje Campbell, Philip LaZebnik, Rachael Ireson, Ricardo Walker, Sam Oladeinde, Sasha Woodward, Scott Maurice, Sean Cheesman, Silas Wyatt-Barke, Simbi Akande, Soophia Foroughi, Stephen Schwartz, Tanisha Spring, The Prince of Egypt, Tristram Kentonthespyinthestalls

The Prince of Egypt

Dominion Theatre

Reviewed – 25th February 2020

★★★★

“With its creative and production heft, this will undoubtably be around a long time”

Born in ancient Egypt and delivered via an unconventional route, this new work from the creators of Wicked (Dreamwork Theatricals) arrives kicking and ululating in the mighty palace of London’s Dominion Theatre. Having first been an animated feature film, this is the story of Moses told with a lot less religion and a lot more bromance, tracking the relationship between young Ramses and his foundling sibling as they grow close, then apart, then further apart.

A thrillingly executed chariot race kicks off an evening of peerless creative arts, from choreography to video projections, from wardrobe to set design. Then, as Ramses (Liam Tamne) steps up to fill the Pharaonic boots of his father Seti (Joe Dixon), Moses heads the other way down the pecking order, by falling for an enslaved dancer, Tzipporah (Christine Allado). Exile ensues as he pursues her into the embrace of the desert-based Midianites, a blissful commune lead by the genial Jethro (Gary Wilmot) who teach him how to dance in 5/4 time. After meeting up with his previously lost family, in particular sister Miriam (Alexia Khadime), Moses realises his identity and takes up the cause of those Hebrew slaves still slogging themselves to death on Ramses’ pyramids.

Enslaved to an unwieldy source, the script by Philip LaZebnik suffers under the strain, with wars and plagues, exile and deliverance having to be explained through the eyes of two brothers in the few gaps between 25 musical numbers. With so much work to do in a small space of time, some lines edge beyond parody. “Moses!! I haven’t seen you in a long time” says Rameses as if spotting a mate in McDonald’s when Moses returns from exile to let his people go. “How did you let the people go?” complains High Priest Hotep (Adam Pearce) as if the multitude escaping was equivalent to losing your Oyster card. However, it does the job of keeping the action and effects speeding along, especially in the second half with plagues being visited with exhilarating brevity. Hotep is no sooner popping open his vestal top to reveal boils than meteors are descending on the backdrop. But this is all, as intended, creating a thundering, crowd-pleasing display, that bears little analysis (should we really applaud a plague?) but gives excellent opportunity for some impressive visuals. The design team in particular (Kevin Depinet’s set, Mike Billings’ lighting, Jon Driscoll’s projections and Chris Fisher’s illusions) create spectacular landscapes, pyramid interiors and Red Sea partings.

Great effort too has gone into Stephen Schwarz’ reworking of his own score. Best known for Wicked and Godspell, here his music and lyrics wrestle absorbingly with the constraints of Egyptian-sounding cadences (courtesy of Hollywood’s biblical blockbusters) and lilting Yiddish melodies, while blending in some old school rock opera and, inevitably, the saccharine sound of Disney Musicals. The cast is universally highly competent as you might expect, the dancers all limb-perfect in service of Sean Cheesman’s superb choreography. With the two leads perhaps lacking enough contrast, only Alexia Khadime truly soars vocally, but Christine Allado and Gary Wilmot join her in managing to project a third dimension to their originally two-dimensional characters. With its creative and production heft, this will undoubtably be around a long time, but doesn’t have the heart of a Lion King.

Reviewed by Dominic Gettins

Photography by Tristram Kenton

The Prince of Egypt

Dominion Theatre until September 12th

Previously reviewed at this venue:

Big The Musical | ★★½ | September 2019

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Mamma Mia! The Party

The O2

Article

Articles, ReviewsAbba, AJ Bentley, Allie Ho Chee, Annsofi Nyberg, Bengt Fröderberg, Björn Ulvaeus, Dawn Spence, Elin König Andersson, Fed Zann, Gareth Owen, Gregor Stewart, Ingrid Sutej, Jessica Spalis, Joanna Monro, John Donovan, Jonathan Evans, Jonathon Bentley, Julia Imbach, Kathryn Tindall, Kimberley Powell, Linda John-Pierre, Luke Higgins, Mamma Mia! The Party, Mark Pusey, Matt Wesley, MM! The Party Ltd, Molly Cleere, Oscar Balmaseda, Patrick Woodroffe, Pauline Stringer, Robin Svensson, Roine Söderlundh, Stacey Haynes, Steph Parry, Steve Rushton, The O2thespyinthestalls

Mamma Mia! The Party

The O2

Visited – September 2019

“you’d have to be the grumpiest stick-in-the-mud not to be swept along by the euphoria of the evening”

The phenomenal success of the Mamma Mia! stage show, which opened in London in 1999 is almost folklore now. Seen by more than 65 million people in over 450 cities and in 16 languages it was followed by the successful film, starring Meryl Street and Amanda Seyfried in 2008. Filmed on location on the small Greek island of Skopelos, it is perhaps one of the most ‘feel-good’ movies ever produced. At the end of each day’s filming the cast and crew would walk the narrow, winding alleys towards the harbour and have dinner in one of the tavernas. A favourite was one that looked out onto the Aegean Sea, run by Nikos, a widower with a young daughter. As the sun set and the moon rose, love blossomed and Nikos fell in love with Kate, the film’s costume designer. The rest is history, as they say. Although not quite – this is all in the imagination of Björn Ulvaeus (one quarter of ABBA and creator of Mamma Mia! The Party).

But imagine visiting Nikos’ Taverna under the tinted glow of a Grecian sunset twelve years later. The attention that the film bestowed on Skopelos is evident in the restaurant’s success; Nikos has enlisted quite a few hired hands including his now blossoming daughter, his wayward English nephew, an accident-prone chef and a host of all dancing, all playing, all singing waiters and waitresses. It’s hard to imagine, as you step out into the drizzle at North Greenwich Underground, that this oasis exists behind a sunburnt door tucked away in the O2. For four hours you leave your troubles behind and bathe in the bougainvillea scented air like you’ve just wandered off the beach and the night is yours. And what a night: a feast for all the senses. When not singing, the waiters bring you plates of Tzatziki, Spanakopita, Kleftiko, Yiachni, Baklava and Briam. You don’t understand what it means but it is delicious. And you don’t understand the show either, but you don’t care; you’re too busy loving every minute of it. As an ‘interactive dining experience’ it puts all other immersive theatre to shame. The scale is epic but the attention to detail is intimate.

But let’s not forget what this is all about. Three dozen Abba songs are rolled out between the courses. But don’t let that put you off. Even if you’re not a fan you’d have to be the grumpiest stick-in-the-mud not to be swept along by the euphoria of the evening. It starts off as a bit of fun but descends into spectacular chaos. High-brow it ain’t – but if you love Abba (and, yes, I’m including all those who pretend not to), and if you like a bit of escapism and fun then this is the show for you. It doesn’t come cheap but it’s worth every drachma.

Article and main photograph by Jonathan Evans

Mamma Mia! The Party

The O2 until 16th February

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