Tag Archives: Jack Weir

CLOSER TO HEAVEN

★★★★

Turbine Theatre

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CLOSER TO HEAVEN at the Turbine Theatre

★★★★

“unashamed fun, energised performances and a true, light-hearted celebration of decadence”

Nearly a quarter of a century on from its premiere at The Arts Theatre, Jonathan Harvey’s “Closer to Heaven”, with music from the Pet Shop Boys, is having another stab at getting closer to its goal. Although we’re still not quite sure what that is. So, for the time being it is best to take it at its superficial face value and plump for the sheer entertainment value it provides. It has that in abundance. Simon Hardwick’s revival splashes it over the gossamer-thin text in sexy swathes of flamboyance and camp panache. Designer David Shields has transformed the Turbine Theatre’s space into Vic’s club (surely soon to become a landmark as celebrated as ‘Rick’s Café’), complete with cabaret tables, haze, ultraviolet neon and dancing boys. We are closer to Heaven – the nightclub – than ever before.

Mistress of ceremonies is Billie Trix; a washed-up former icon, afraid to look in the mirror. Although we don’t quite understand why – Frances Ruffelle looks pretty damn good, and sounds sensational when she sings. The purity and emotion shines through, particularly in her solo numbers such as the evocative ‘Friendly Fire’ that opens the second act. She loses a touch of her command when she dips into dialogue, with a voice ravaged by years of abuse and an accent that has clearly lost its way. The owner of the club has a similarly tenuous hold on the proceedings. Filled with as many regrets, Kurt Kansley’s Vic is a bruiser with a heart of gold; a gay man trapped in a divorced father’s body, trying to make amends with a daughter who yearns for somebody to call Dad. His estranged daughter, Shell, is remarkably familiar with Vic’s entourage for someone who has just walked into his life after fifteen years, but we can overlook these discrepancies. Courtney Bowman’s standout performance lifts her character from the shallow text like the pages of a technicolour pop-up book that fold out into three dimensions.

 

 

A love story trickles away as a sub plot. Shell falls for newcomer Dave (Glenn Adamson). Or rather ‘Straight Dave’ as he is known – a nickname that is plainly in breach of the Sale of Goods Act. Dave falls for local drug dealer, Mile End Lee (Connor Carson). A sticky end all round is unavoidable. Adamson’s Dave is a wannabe singer and dancer whose integrity is as ill-fitting as a tight pair of shorts, while Carson’s angelic looks fail to betray any notion of his lifestyle. Of course, they ‘get it on’, to the chagrin of Shell, but the sparks don’t quite fly. And the repercussions trigger shoulder-shrugs rather than shockwaves of emotion.

There are moments of humour, with choice one-liners shared among the cast. David Muscat’s slippery music mogul, Bob Saunders, devours the clichés with relish and it’s difficult to tell whether he is choking on the words or his tongue in his cheek. But the whole company are having a ball. Especially Ruffelle, whose gleeful, natural exuberance shines brighter, warmer and more dazzling than the cool neon and swinging LED beams of light.

The music is everything you would expect of the Pet Shop Boys, but with more theatricality and a refreshing dynamic that is absent from their chart toppers. The score carries the show, along with the impeccable vocal performances. It is a beautifully dressed show, and slickly choreographed by Christopher Tendai. The ensemble are as integral as the leads, and just as watchable. If the performers are the stars, the costumes are the superstars.

We feel uplifted by the time we reach curtain call, which is surprising given the schmaltzy, message-heavy finale that wants to pull us under like a bed of quicksand. Yet we feel high. Not quite as high as the ketamine-fuelled characters onstage, mind, but at least we’ve remained this side of the law. Vic’s club is a place we’d like to frequent when looking for unashamed fun, energised performances and a true, light-hearted celebration of decadence. Well worth getting close to.

 


CLOSER TO HEAVEN at the Turbine Theatre

Reviewed on 5th June 2024

by Jonathan Evans

Photography by Mark Senior

 

 


 

 

Previously reviewed at this venue:

RITA LYNN | ★★★★ | January 2024
WRECKAGE | ★★★ | January 2023
DIVA: LIVE FROM HELL | ★★★★★ | August 2022
MY NIGHT WITH REG | ★★★★ | July 2021
MY SON’S A QUEER BUT WHAT CAN YOU DO | ★★★½ | June 2021

CLOSER TO HEAVEN

CLOSER TO HEAVEN

Click here to see our Recommended Shows page

 

A Very Very Bad Cinderella

★★★★

The Other Palace

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A VERY VERY BAD CINDERELLA at The Other Palace

★★★★

“Neil Hurst and Jodie Prenger’s writing is wild and lewd but is equally sharp, and intelligently plays with words”

If you’ve been in the news this year, or are a showbiz personality of any sort, or even merely a major player in a current West End musical, you should be advised to steer clear of “A Very Very Bad Cinderella”. Unless you’re some sort of masochist. None of the above escapes the scattershot onslaught of bawdy jokes and devil-may-care references that are loaded into this most unseasonal of seasonal pantomimes. Thrown out into the audience like sweets, not everyone will catch the in-jokes, and a great many go over our heads.

The musical theatre world is well and truly ransacked. The main casualty that lies in its wake is political correctness. Despite the obligatory use of a snow machine at this time of year, this is not a show for snowflakes. It doesn’t take itself seriously, and the audience are invited (no – make that ‘forced’) to follow suit. To say that this is an ‘alternative’ take on ‘Cinderella’ is a bit of an understatement. Okay, it’s hanging onto the basic plotline for dear life, and the stock characters are there – we have Cinderella, of course, and Buttons and Prince Charming. But gone are the Disney, cutesy names for the ‘Ugly Sisters’; instead, we have Fanny and Vajayjay. You can see where this is going now?

May Tether plays Cinderella, and like the show’s title itself, is channelling a certain other Cinderella who also acquired the prefix ‘bad’. The whole show is a parody, and Tether lampoons with affection and with tongue in cheek. Although the script advocates that tongues are destined for rather more unsavoury parts of the anatomy. Yes, it is that sort of show. That is not a dig, however. Neil Hurst and Jodie Prenger’s writing is wild and lewd but is equally sharp, and intelligently plays with words. We are occasionally reminded of the likes of the Two Ronnies, for example, particularly during a very clever soliloquy in which the titles of every well-known musical are strung together to form a witty and breathless anecdote.

Keanna Bloomfield switches between Buttons and Prince Charming, drawing attention to the writers’ neglect in allowing for costume changes. Budgetary constraints and the producers’ limitations and lack of foresight are also frequently shared with the audience. Maybe spread a little too thin, but the comedy is thickened if you are acquainted with the behind-the-scenes machinations of theatre in all its variety. Genres are crossed with gay abandon as the ‘Ugly Sisters’ lead us headlong into the world of Cabaret and Drag. A captivating duo they are the wicked Queens of the night. Veronica Green’s Fanny is deliciously spicy (I never, ever thought I’d be writing that in a review). Matched by Imelda Warren-Green’s pouting, sourpuss Vajayjay (come on now, concentrate!), the self-declared ‘fab-u-lous’ pair are a comic act that draw the biggest laughs. If the show were to be streamed for general release you wouldn’t catch much of what is said due to the number of censoring beeps required.

There is a narrative thread, just in case we can’t keep up, provided by an uncredited, on-screen presence whose deadpan delivery alludes to the show being ‘very very bad’ indeed. Yes – it is ‘bad’ and ‘wicked’ and ‘sick’. But these are all huge compliments if you’re referring to the urban dictionary. It is a very very fun night out. Prepare to be offended and delighted in equal measure. Oh, and be wary of where you sit, unless the idea of wearing a face mask pulled out from Fanny’s undergarments appeals to you. There – that should get you scrolling for the booking page if nothing else.


A VERY VERY BAD CINDERELLA at The Other Palace

Reviewed on 6th December 2023

by Jonathan Evans

Photography by Danny Kaan


 

Previously reviewed at this venue:

Trompe L’Oeil | ★★★ | September 2023
Dom – The Play | ★★★★ | February 2023
Ghosted – Another F**king Christmas Carol | ★★★★★ | December 2022
Glory Ride | ★★★ | November 2022
Millennials | ★★★ | July 2022

A Very Very Bad Cinderella

A Very Very Bad Cinderella

Click here to see our Recommended Shows page