Tag Archives: Leo Elso

FRENCH TOAST

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Riverside Studios

FRENCH TOAST at Riverside Studios

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“It mocks pretty much everything about the industry, but it is also a heartfelt love letter to the theatre”

The French actor, director and writer, Jean Poiret, is best known for his 1973 β€œLa Cage aux Folles”. He is perhaps less well known as a theatre and film actor before, making some forty motion pictures over three decades. You have to dig deep into his biography to come across the 1979 comedy. β€œFΓ©fΓ© de Broadway”. Writer Sam Alexander has obviously done so, and we can only thank him for that. His adaptation, that follows the backstage shenanigans of an ill-conceived musical, is a wonderfully light-hearted, eccentric and witty hour-and-a-half of escapism – now titled β€œFrench Toast”. There are going to be obvious comparisons to Michael Frayn’s β€œNoises Off” which was conceived around the same time this side of the English Channel. There are contrasts too. Alexander’s take on Poiret’s story (co-adapted with director Marianne Badrichani) draws a lot from the culture clash between the French β€˜glamour’ and the British β€˜eccentricity’. β€œFrench Toast” is indeed guilty of cramming itself full of stereotypes and caricatures, but the audience are willing victims of the crime.

Set in 1977, it focuses on French diva, Jacqueline BrΓ©mont (Edith Vernes). Rich and successful in her native Paris, she has decided to branch out and conquer London’s West End but instead lands up in Basingstoke. Old flame Simon Monk (ChΓ© Walker) is directing an ill-fated musical adaptation of Jean Racine’s β€˜PhΓ¨dre’. He has no intention of casting Jacqueline in the lead role – she can’t sing and dance to save her life. But money talks. Without her there’s no investment. What ensues is a farcical entanglement of egos during a hilarious stop-start rehearsal process. ClichΓ©s are pulled out of the hat like a manic conjuror on speed, but so are many moments of wit, humour, quirkiness and sharp comic observation that bring a huge smile to our faces. It mocks pretty much everything about the industry, but it is also a heartfelt love letter to the theatre.

You need to be exceptionally good to convince at being a bad actor. And this company have the collective talent to ham it up to the histrionic hilt. ChΓ© Walker brilliantly encompasses the authoritarian director who has suddenly lost all control. The show is being cast behind his back. Walker’s stunned expression on day one of rehearsals is an image that will imprint itself on the mind for a long time. But to shake things up a bit, Simon Monk enrols punk musician Nicky Butler. Monk thinks of himself as a bit of a β€˜right-on’ radical. Reece Richardson gives a star turn as the bewildered muso caught up in a thespian nightmare. Love interest comes via Suzy Kohane’s stylish yet earnestly β€˜New Age’ Kate Freeman. Kohane’s is a standout performance, particularly when she sidesteps Paul Hegarty’s vividly accurate, camp yet lecherous Etienne GrΓ©mine. We are reminded that the seventies were β€˜different times, darling!’ but a modern sensitivity is layered onto the narrative without detracting from the authentically period setting.

There is some doubling up of the roles. Josie Benson shines as budding actress Faye Rose but also a delicious Madame Bouffard, the diva’s dour dresser. The whole company is having so much fun, and Edith Vernes is no exception as the central figure Jacqueline. Despite a slightly clunky opening few moments, the show swiftly warms up. Touches of Alan Bennett’s β€˜Habeas Corpus’ take the style dangerously close to farce, as trousers start to go missing, but other influences pull it back. The mayhem of β€˜The Young Ones’ is visible through rays of β€˜Morecambe and Wise’. Tara Young’s choreography is spot on with her playful nods to Fosse while Sammy Dowson’s costumes let us know exactly which year, if not month, of the seventies we are in.

Crucial to the piece is Leo Elso’s music. The lush escapism of disco locks horns with the raw energy of punk. Like the text, it parodies and cherishes at the same time with an authenticity that pinpoints the era in which The Village People and Abba could share the world’s stage with The Clash and The Sex Pistols. The culture shocks resonate throughout, up until the upbeat finale in which virtuosity and humour make a perfect marriage.

The play is peopled by people from different backgrounds, yet the comedy of misunderstandings ultimately leads to unexpected reconciliations and a feelgood factor that tips the scales. Like it’s culinary counterpart, β€œFrench Toast” is crisp on the outside but fluffy and tender on the inside. At times a little bit eggy, but delicious. A toast can definitely be raised – in French or in English.


FRENCH TOAST at Riverside Studios

Reviewed on 7th October 2024

by Jonathan Evans

Photography by Lidia Crisafulli

 

 

 

 

 

 

Previously reviewed at this venue:

KIM’S CONVENIENCE | β˜…β˜…β˜… | September 2024
THE WEYARD SISTERS | β˜…β˜… | August 2024
MADWOMEN OF THE WEST | β˜…β˜… | August 2024
MOFFIE | β˜…β˜…β˜… | June 2024
KING LEAR | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | May 2024
THIS IS MEMORIAL DEVICE | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | April 2024
ARTIFICIALLY YOURS | β˜…β˜…β˜… | April 2024
ALAN TURING – A MUSICAL BIOGRAPHY | β˜…β˜… | January 2024
ULSTER AMERICAN | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | December 2023
OTHELLO | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | October 2023
FLOWERS FOR MRS HARRIS | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | October 2023
RUN TO THE NUNS – THE MUSICAL | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | July 2023

FRENCH TOAST

FRENCH TOAST

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Le Misanthrope – 2.5 Stars

Furlong

Le Misanthrope

Camden People’s Theatre

Reviewed – 21st June 2018

β˜…β˜…Β½

“troubled by needless montage sequences and audience participation that add little to proceedings”

 

In a time in which news coverage surrounding β€˜alternative facts’ and β€˜fake news’, Moliere’s Le Misanthrope holds an obvious appeal. The desire of a single person to speak truth in an age in which lies are dominant burns as brightly as when written. Revived here at the Camden People’s Theatre, the transference of the play to a modern newsroom both aids and restricts the play’s appeal.

Relocated to the modern day, we follow Alceste, a popular news anchor. He despises the flattery in society, and prefers to speak bluntly. However, he is in love Celeste, who uses her fame to spread as much gossip as possible. Alceste’s journey to win his love and correct the society around him will see him very much swimming against the tide.

The script itself is well adapted, performed through rhyming couplets that lend the dialogue a natural rhythm. Interestingly, the company are performing the show alternatively across the run in both English and French. It is striking to see how relevant Moliere proves to be to today’s world, with links to the Donald Trumps’ and the Loose Women of the world coming all too easily.

Alongside playing Alceste, star David Furlong also directs the play. He is complimented by a fascinating video design that links the play to social media. While generally smooth, it is a shame that the production can lack pace, and is troubled by needless montage sequences and audience participation that add little to proceedings. Also, while generally well performed, the running time does in extended periods struggle for laughs.Β 

Surrounding Furlong is a strong ensemble cast. Anoushka Rava captures the vapid nature of her character. Many highlights come from Leo Elso’s Oronte, a sensitive soul that takes every chance to indulge in his artistry. Furlong himself, while undertaking a tremendous task in starring and directing this production, doesn’t seem to really hate enough. It may be due to his nature that even in his most hatefully intended rants, he still comes across as quite pleasant.

While interesting to see, Moliere’s text does in this performance really cry out for unleashing. You leave wanting more precision, raised stakes and the changed setting works better for some aspects than others. Overall then, a fascinating bi-language project from Exchange Theatre that while holding much promise, at this stage doesn’t quite hit the height of its ambitions.

 

Reviewed by Callum McCartney

Photography by Anais Le Pape

 


Le Misanthrope

Camden People’s Theatre

 

Related
Other Moliere directed by David Furlong
Don Juan | β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜… | Hoxton Hall | April 2018

 

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