London Musicals 2010.pub - Over The Footlights

THE HUMAN COMEDY
London run: Young Vic, September 13th – 18th
Music: Galt MacDermot
Lyrics & Book: William Dumaresq
Director: John Fulljames
Choreographer: Sasha Milavic Davies
Musical Director: Phil Bateman
Cast: Joe Slovick (Homer), Helen Hobson (Kate),
Tom Robertson (Marcus), Kate Marlais (Bess),
Jordi Fray/Theo Stevenson (Ulysses),
Jo Servi (Spangler), Tony Stansfield (Grogan), Brenda
Edwards (Diana), Terel Nugent (Toby),
Sarah Harlington (Mary), Tomm Coles, Chris Storr
2010
Songs: In a Little Town in California, I Think the Kid Will
Do, Cocoanut Cream Pie, Daddy Will Not Come Walking Through the Door, Remember Always to Give, Long Past
Sunset, An Orphan Am I, The Birds in the Trees, The World is Full of Loneliness
Story: The show is set in the World War 2 Californian town of Ithaca (a classical reference to the place Ulysess
longed to return from his Odyssey). 14 year old Homer Macauley, a telegram messenger, faces the day-to-day
sorrows and joys of the town. His mother Kate struggles to support her children following the death of her husband;
his older brother Marcus is in the army; his teenage sister Bess daydreams about romance; and his younger brother
Ulysses divides his attention between the passing trains and an unrequited desire to know why his father had to die.
Other characters include Spangler and Grogan, who run the telegraph office, Spangler's girlfriend Diana, Marcus's
orphaned army buddy Toby and Marcus's sweetheart Mary. There are glimpses of deep pain in the story, especially
when Homer brings his mother the telegram announcing the death of his older brother, and the scene in which the
bereaved citizens are presented with neatly folded American flags in memory of their dead soldier sons.
Notes: This through-composed show is more American folk-opera than traditional book musical. It originated in
1943 as William Saroyan’s rejected screenplay, which he then turned into a novel. The musical version opened off-
Broadway on December 28th 1983 to excellent notices and ran for 79 performances before transferring to Broadway
itself. After 20 previews it opened on April 5th 1984 but ran for a mere 13 performances, the general reaction being
this was more an oratorio for the concert platform rather than a conventional theatre. The London premiere used a
cast of 20 professionals and an amateur chorus of around 80 people drawn from the local community. It received a
great deal of praise.
20
Photo by Keith Pattison
Photo by Johan Persson
PASSION (2 nd Revival)
London run: Donmar Warehouse,
September 21 st – November 27th
Music & Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim
Book: James Lapine
Director: Jamie Lloyd
Choreographer: Scott Ambler
Musical Director: Alan Williams
Cast: David Thaxton (Giorgio),
Elena Roger (Fosca), Scarlett Strallen (Clara),
David Birrell (Colonel Ricci),
Allan Corduner (Doctor Tambourri),
Simon Bailey, Haydn Oakley, Ross Dawes,
Tim Morgan, Iwan Lewis.
Elena Roger & David Thaxton
This revival, part of Stephen Sondheim's 80th
birthday celebrations, opened on September 10, 2010 in previews, with the official opening September 21. It
received almost unanimous critical praise and won the Evening Standard Best Musical Award, while David Thaxton
won the Olivier Award for the Best Actor in a Musical. (Elena Roger’s outstandingly moving performance missed
out on the Best Actress in a Musical Award, which went to Sheridan Smith for “Legally Blonde” – something which
caused a lot of controversy.)
Notes: Original London production: Queen’s Theatre, March 1996; First revival: Bridewell, March 2004