Tag Archives: George Abbott

THE BOYS FROM SYRACUSE

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Upstairs at the Gatehouse

THE BOYS FROM SYRACUSE at Upstairs at the Gatehouse

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“Stand out performance of the night goes to Enzo Benvenuti”

The Boys From Syracuse playing Upstairs at the Gatehouse, is a pared down production of the 1938 hit by Rodgers and Hart, with everyone doubling up on roles.

The musical is based on Shakespeare’s A Comedy of Errors, when two sets of identical twins Antipholus of Ephesus and Antipholus of Syracuse (John Faal in the dual role) were separated as children from each other in a shipwreck; along with their servants, both named Dromio (Brendan Matthew in the dual role). When the pair from Syracuse come to Ephesus, a comedy of errors and mistaken identities ensues when the wives of the Ephesians, Adriana (Caroline Kennedy) and her servant Luce (Karen Wilkinson), mistake the two strangers for their husbands. Adriana’s sister Luciana (Georgie Faith) and the Syracuse Antipholus fall in love. But all ends happily with some fun puppetry!

This is a silly musical set in Roman times, you know it’s old Italy because the tiled adverts on the set include Rent A Chariot. The songs are classics including Falling In Love With Love and This Can’t Be Love. All the cast have good voices and in act two, the female trio of Adriana, Luciana and Luce perform Sing For Your Supper, with clear and strong harmonies which is a delight.

Stand out performance of the night goes to Enzo Benvenuti as both the Duke and the Sergeant – his smile inducing characters played with comedy and verve.

Directed by Mark Giesser, the pace meant in the most part the comedy did not sparkle. The costumes (Alice McNicholas) were distracting as you tried to work out the differences between the complicatedly patterned bright waistcoats, which did not help to differentiate the twins with ease – making it harder to separate who was who. The accents did also drop at times which did not help either.

The set was simple with the comedic tiled backdrop and one platform. However, the unnecessary three β€œmarble” boxes were continually moved by the cast for no reason, adding nothing to the production at all. And the stand alone single front door on wheels, was an embarrassment for poor John Faal, when his Antipholus of Ephesus is locked out of his house, and bangs and tries to open it. But the door just moved and wobbled horribly. Maybe try to turn it into a comedy moment by moving the door back and forth on its wheels with purpose?

The five piece band, a fantastic luxury in such a small space, was led by Musical Director Benjamin Levy on the piano. Some of the songs felt they could have been slightly more up tempo, but it was a tight team of musicians with a good sound balance with the cast.

Upstairs at the Gatehouse is known for putting on big musical theatre shows, and some clearly work better in the space with a small cast, than others.


THE BOYS FROM SYRACUSE at Upstairs at the Gatehouse

Reviewed on 6th September 2024

by Debbie Rich

Photography by Flavia Fraser-Cannon

 

 

 

 

Previously reviewed at this venue:

TOM LEHRER IS TEACHING MATH AND DOESN’T WANT TO TALK TO YOU | β˜…β˜… | May 2024
IN CLAY | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | March 2024
SONGS FOR A NEW WORLD | β˜…β˜…β˜… | February 2024
YOU’RE A GOOD MAN, CHARLIE BROWN | β˜…β˜… | December 2023
THIS GIRL – THE CYNTHIA LENNON STORY | β˜…β˜… | July 2023

THE BOYS FROM SYRACUSE

THE BOYS FROM SYRACUSE

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George Abbott Changes Your Life – 3.5 Stars

George

George Abbott Changes Your Life

2Northdown

Reviewed – 21st August 2018

β˜…β˜…β˜…Β½

George is narcissistic, misogynistic, mean, energetic, manic and completely off his rocker

 

George Abbott, failed actor turned self-help guru and descendent of the infamous Abbott family, wants to help you change your life. He decides to do this through the medium of a lecture. Initially he was hoping for the Southbank Centre but instead is stuck with 2Northdown, a small venue near Kings Cross, as part of the Camden Fringe.

The audience is welcomed at the door by two performers dressed all in white who ask, β€œDo you want to change your life?” Everyone is offered squash and biscuits, and some of us are offered plastic β€˜goody’ bags. The space is intimate. Two rows of chairs face a stage covered in a white tarpaulin, with a single microphone, and a projection screen at the back. A technician hangs over the bars of the tech desk on a mezzanine above, watching us and loudly munching crisps. Just by walking into the venue the bizarre tone of evening is immediately set.

The main character is George Abbott (played by the actor of the same name) who begins to take the audience through his 12-step program, which is not at all what you would expect. Abbott seems to believe in breaking people down before building them back up and his program is much darker and more sinister than your average self-help seminar. George is narcissistic, misogynistic, mean, energetic, manic and completely off his rocker. None of what he says makes sense but he delivers it well and it’s good fun to watch him jump around the stage.

While Abbott is the star of this Ionesco-like show there are other characters involved. The two men who meet me at the door (Cullum Ball and William Brown) spend the entire play standing next to the stage assisting Abbott, desperately trying to keep the show on track and getting the audience involved. These two assistants are clearly fed up with George’s antics and the actors play this very well. Their calmer, quieter energy nicely juxtaposes Abbott’s intensity.

The plot of the play is completely bonkers and absurd and also quite meta; you’re never quite sure if you’re watching a play, a lecture, or if the actors have broken character. This keeps the audience on their toes and the energy up. However, the show runs a little too long and after a while the barrage of surprises and slapstick enslaughts becomes a little tiresome.

The projections are simple but this works well with the low-budget, kooky vibe of the show. The technician (Joe Dolan) also gets involved at one point in a totally over-the-top, farcical display of humiliation and is a very good sport about it.

Overall, George Abbott Changes Your Life is a fast-paced, insane roller coaster ride filled with nutty antics and outrageous shenanigans. Nothing makes any sense and though this gets somewhat tedious, the performers seem like they’re having an incredible amount of fun and the audience is willing to come along with them on this crazy journey. The laughs in the crowd are frequent and genuine, even if sometimes they’re a little bit out of nervousness.

 

Reviewed for thespyinthestalls.com

Photography courtesy Spare the Rod

 

Pigeon

George Abbott Changes Your Life

2Northdown

as part of The Camden Fringe Festival 2018

 

 

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