Sondheim songs

Press, 19 October 1987, Page 4

Sondheim songs

- “Side by Side by Sondheim,” music and * lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, directed - by Stuart Devenie for the Court Z Theatre. At Court One from Saturday, * October 17. Running time: 8 p.m. to 7 11.2 S p.m. Reviewed by John Farnsworth. ” For some reason, the Court recently - seems to have dispensed with much real Z attempt at any serious drama. Apart - from an unusually foreshortened season Z for “Virginia Woolf” we have been * presented with two light-weight Roger 7 Hall pieces and will have to sweat out the summer with nothing more demandIng than, of all things, “Aladdin.” Even 2 the show under review is a musical resurrection from 1981. Granted there * have been financial problems to contend *■ with, but it is an inadequate and disap- * pointing programme for a professional, 5 subsidised theatre. * Having said that, “Side by Side by 7 Sondheim” is a cheerful, vivacious production. In this case, it might almost be sub-titled, "The Strange Case of the - Missing Fourth Performer” since pre- -• publicity had suggested there were four, 2 not three, singers. In the event, Yvonne * Martin, Janice Bateman, and Paul Bar--2 rett produced sufficient vitality to make ■ three look like a whole troupe of 2 performers as they hoofed their way " energetically about the stage. * Still, It might explain the strange ■■ decision to employ the two pianists, Kay 2 Relche and Michael Williams, as , comperes. They are both likeable and *" on paying but, under the circumstances, « for a professional stage : nersonallty. Musically, however, they * were almost beyond criticism, with a ZmdHvitv and skill which supported and : all the performances. * The show itself is a kind of visual -' «sondheim’s Greatest Hits,” as the audi- * tawhisked through the greater-or-musicals such as “Gypsy,” ’ 'Tuttk'W l MurtCj” and “Sweeney * U»e biggest contributions * “F0»to"

With Sondheim as a modern-day Rodgers and Hammerstein rolled into one, it certainly shows how a prodigious lyric and musical talent can be transformed into formidable box-office capital. For the three performers, however, it adds up to a demanding schedule of more than 30 songs. In the first half, in fact, they had to pummel a soggy opening into life through sheer hard work, and it was not until the second that they could get the pay-off in songs like “Send in the Clowns,” or “A Boy Like That.” Interestingly, the ones that came off best were mostly those with a strong narrative or comic element. Here, Stuart Devenie’s simple, direct staging was at its most effective, although it tended to look somewhat static and unimaginative for some of the slow numbers. Of the singers, Yvonne Martin was little short of splendid with a confidence, voice, and finish which rightly won her an enthusiastic response in “Madam’s Song” and "The Worst Pies in London.” Paul Barrett, some insecure pitching aside, shone most as a foil and especially in duets like “The Little Things You Do Together” and “Barcelona.” Janice Bateman produced a sottish, well-controlled voice but showed a real flair for character work, particularly in “Broadway Baby” and “I’m Still Here.” Yet it took all three to produce the one real show-stopper with “You Gotta Getta Gimmick” as they pranced across Brian McMillan’s functional croissantshaped set, well lit by Mike McKenzie. Here, too, a word of praise for/Roger Corbett’s exceedingly deft lighting operation. What characterises the show at its best is an unexpected informality and warmth, and a buoyancy that pervades the second half. As a production, it seems determined to befriend its audience and by the end, there was plenty of evidence it had that