Tag Archives: Natasha J Barnes

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"Falsettos" at The Other Palace

William Finn’s 1992 musical has two Tony Awards to its credit and for its long delayed British premiere a strong cast. To add to the excitement, the book is from none other than James Lapine. But Finn’s music and lyrics make this story of a modern Jewish family ramble. Even sterling performances from Laura Pitt-Pulford and Daniel Boys, as divorcees Trina and Marvin, cannot save what descends into a frantic scramble for “tears and schmaltz”.

Director Tara Overfield-Wilkinson deploys a sensible strategy in trying to keep the show simple. And Finn’s off-beat wit, focusing on neurosis, is given its due. But Falsettos’ off-Broadway history, a merger of two single act shows that form a trilogy, makes the show unwieldy. Finn gets bogged down in the minutiae of how Marvin left his wife for a no-good-guy, who turns out OK, while Trina starts an affair with the family shrink, and their son Jason acts with more maturity than all of them. Oh, we’ll get detail…but not depth.

Laura Pitt-Pulford (Laura Pitt-Pulford in Falsettos at The Other Palace
Laura Pitt-Pulford

The opening number sets the tone. ‘Four Jews In A Room Bitching’ is sharp and quirky but predictable and lacking charm. Ultimately, none of the characters rise above caricature. Pitt-Pulford gets the chance to shine with a number about a mental breakdown. And Marvin’s affair with the promiscuous Whizzer (what kind of name is that?) is filled with passion by Boys. But like their new partners – successfully performed with strong vocals from Joel Montague and Oliver Savile – the characters are too thinly written to care about.

Daniel Boys & Oliver Savile in Falsettos at The Other Palace
Daniel Boys & Oliver Savile

Things don’t get better. The second act focuses on the characters ageing and on mortality – a message hammered home. The combination of Jason’s bar mitzvah and Whizzer contracting AIDS is painfully forced. Shockingly, despite Boys’ forceful singing, the finale arrives too quickly and is dealt with too briefly to carry much emotional impact.

Gemma Knight-Jones & Natasha J Barnes in Falsettos at The Other Palace
Gemma Knight-Jones & Natasha J Barnes

All the way through, too many questions arise. Why should Trina and Marvin care so much about each other’s new sex lives? What’s the real motivation for either starting a new affair? The close family that Marvin still wants – the depiction of which guarantees the show has a place in the history of LGBT theatre – isn’t really shown to us. And why are the lesbian neighbours – a shameful waste of the talents of Gemma Knight-Jones and Natasha J Barnes  – only introduced in the second act! Even the title theme, introduced in a dream, is a puzzle; too much in Falsettos is ill conceived and under explained.

You can forgive a musical many failings if the score is up to scratch. It’s clear why Finn’s compositions have admirers – he can write a tune and some of the harmonising is beautiful. But the musical references are obvious and the variety in the structure of each number repetitive:  a staccato opening includes a gag, there’s a pause for the thought then a manic finale. Worse still, Finn’s lyrics come close to sounding lazy. The dazzling delivery here can’t hide how much repetition is used (although credit for getting canasta in a song). The words, like the characters’ confused motivation, sometimes don’t even make sense. Despite fine performances, the truth is that Falsettos ends up a disappointing mess.

Until 23 November 2019

www.lwtheatres.co.uk/theatres/the-other-palace/

Photos by The Standout Company

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“The Twilight Zone” at the Ambassadors Theatre

Bringing an iconic TV series to the stage must be a daunting project. Rod Serling’s show ran from 1959 to 1964, a third revival will air on American TV later this year, and cult status has to be a factor. Taking the stories seriously alongside their kitsch attraction is a balancing act. But acclaimed playwright Anne Washburn, who has previously used The Simpsons as inspiration, approaches the project cleverly, with a campy air that makes her script often funny and consistently enjoyable.

The production is in the capable hands of director Richard Jones, who adds further wry touches that complement a period feel and gets the most out of running jokes about cigarettes and the moralistic narration that signed off each TV episode. Along with Paul Steinberg’s star-splattered set design, with a crew of stagehands dressed to almost but not quite blend in, this is a stylish affair that keeps eyes peeled and deserves its transfer from the Almeida Theatre.

There are eight stories performed by ten actors. Jones ensures they are a disciplined team and there’s a great deal of fun in spotting the swiftest changes (I think Nicholas Karimi gets the prize for that) and most dramatic transformations (I’ll go for Oliver Alvin-Wilson). Meanwhile, Adrianna Bertola stands out playing a series of younger characters very well and Natasha J Barnes gets to use plenty of her skills, including a great singing voice, in roles that might be the most varied.

Washburn’s big moves are to interweave the tales and try to make them various. If the focus is on missing people and space, with Cold War preoccupations and aliens aplenty, then at least the tone alters. The fruition of a story about an imminent nuclear attack gets very serious, very quickly (Barnes is excellent here), while an astronaut’s return from a 50-year mission is made surprisingly moving by Alisha Bailey.

A meta-theatrical epilogue, which praises the audience’s “can-do” approach for using our imagination to make so many fantastic situations work, is sweet if a touch predictable. Which takes us to a big problem. Even if you don’t know the stories here exactly, the scenarios are the stuff of urban mythology and staples of pop culture. That’s what interests Washburn. It can be reassuring to see them again (reruns have an appeal), but there’s a lack of tension and suspense in the show, and therefore a limit to how creepy it can get. In short, it can’t surprise. This is a strong production full of smart touches but, for all the effort and talent, these spacey trips into other dimensions aren’t going to rock anybody’s world.

Until 1 June 2019

www.TwilightZoneThePlay.com

Photo by Marc Brenner

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“Wasted” at the Southwark Playhouse

It’s not the fault of this strong show, a rock musical about the Brontë family, that it’s playing at the same time as another new piece called Six, which recasts the wives of Henry VIII as a pop group. Both musicals infuse history with a modern sensibility – and a lot of attitude – so maybe the more the merrier. To be clear, both shows are strong and exhibit exciting new promise from British talent, and comparisons shouldn’t be overstated as the pieces have different ambitions. But while Six is sharp and snappy, feeling like an exciting breakthrough, Wasted overreaches and comes a bit of a cropper.

The performances are all excellent. Natasha J Barnes takes the lead as Charlotte, dealing well with the clumsy flashback device of an interview and really belting out the songs. Molly Lynch is a prim and proper Anne, who also sounds great. Siobhan Athwal’s Emily, an eye-catching and committed mix of Kate Bush and Lady Gaga, proves hugely appealing. And the show has a lot of Branwell, performed with a deal of charisma by Matthew Jacobs Morgan. There’s some dissonance in the direction from Adam Lenson; it’s not quite clear how funny Wasted is supposed to be. Athwal gets a lot of laughs and Branwell is primed for them, yet the piece consistently veers towards gravity, even grimness.

There’s a great score from Christopher Ash. Heavy on rock, with plenty of passion delivered courtesy of Barnes and Lynch, with a bit of punk thrown in, Ash writes the best kind of pastiche. A comedy number for Emily recalls Kate Bush very cleverly while Jacobs Morgan’s smoother vocals are utilised well. Yet each song is just that little bit too long, too emphatic and too insistent. And Ash is not well served by the lyrics from Carl Miller, which seldom rise above the pedestrian. Miller gets a lot of information in, but there’s more prose than poetry here and attempts at humour are poor.

Tackling all four lives proves too much. It’s not that the show is too long but that Miller’s book becomes repetitive. The doom and gloom of the Brontës’ lives takes too much of the first act. And then they die. Fitting in a couple of songs about their work along the way is probably essential (although these are the weakest numbers). Presenting Branwell’s death as so literally a the result of his sisters’ success, then Emily’s collapse because of cruel critics, proves frustrating. Trying to tie all this together is the title – that the family saw their lives as wasted in one way or another – which isn’t quite enough. The show itself couldn’t be described as a waste in any way. But several ideas need reconsidering to give its subjects, and the talents of its cast and crew, a proper outing.

Until 6 October 2019

www.southwarkplayhouse.co.uk

Photo by Helen Maybanks

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“Tryst” at the Tabard Theatre

Karoline Leach’s 1997 play is an intelligent historical thriller, driven by detailed character studies, that manipulates an audience marvellously.

Fred Perry is George, a conman who marries for money and leaves his wives the morning after the ceremony. George has a pretty foul line in objectification, and the cruel humour in the play is deliberately uncomfortable – offset slightly by the extravagance of his lies – but Perry still makes the character charismatic. As his latest affair develops, from his exploitative calculations to an emotional involvement, Leach thoroughly plays with the question of how disturbed his character really is.

Natasha J Barnes is equally good as his newest victim, Adelaide. A not-so-simple shop girl, with a small inheritance that makes her George’s target, she turns into “quite a surprise” for him. Barnes wins hearts – showing Adelaide to have a dignity to match her folly. As the newlyweds’ back stories develop in a journey that’s full of tension, we see her power grow. George gives her confidence and she offers him the chance of a better life. Is there a chance this odd relationship might work?

It’s important not to give away whether this rendezvous ends happily – the play’s twist is a good one. Phoebe Barran’s direction takes cares to keep up the tension, following the text’s nuances with precision, from initial humour, to touches of romance, to realism. Tryst is a play full of positives and negatives. And the best bit is not knowing what it will all add up to in the end.

Until 5 November 2017

tabardtheatre.co.uk

Photo by Alastair Hilton

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“I was looking at the ceiling and then I saw the sky” at the Theatre Royal Stratford East

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This musical, fortunately abbreviated to Ceiling/Sky, follows seven twentysomethings living in LA and how they change in the aftermath of an earthquake. The spectrum of characters’ interests and ethnic backgrounds allows John Adams plenty of scope for musical experimentation. Known as a modern classical composer and feted in the UK for his work at the ENO, Adams is a ferociously intelligent musician. This work flaunts his knowledge of great American musicals as well as creating a contemporary urban soundscape. It is dauntingly ambitious in its reach.

Directors Kerry Michael and Matthew Xia see the strengths of this fascinating piece and seek to address some of its more intimidating tendencies by emphasising its theatricality and casting a group of strong, young actors. The cast bravely tackle a demanding score and excel in revealing the humanity of their characters.

Natasha J Barnes plays an offensive TV reporter whose frosty demeanour convincingly breaks down in the face of crisis. She is pursued by a young lawyer (Colin Ryan), who gives a determined, passionate performance, but she prefers a policeman she is writing about. Stewart Charlesworth is wonderful in this role – full of angst and diffidence. In an extremely awkward arrest scene he apprehends Leon Lopez, a petty criminal in love with an illegal immigrant (Anna Mateo). Both bring out the lyricism in some great songs. The final couple are a lecherous preacher played with amusing grace by Jason Denton and his long-suffering girlfriend performed by Cynthia Erivo, whose stunning voice gives her character an aggressive complexity.

But for all Adams’ skill and the cast’s flair, the star of this show is lyricist June Jordan. I confess my ignorance of this poet and essayist but will be scouring The London Library as soon as I have posted this review. The plot is never explained in Ceiling/Sky – you just go straight into the songs. Remarkably, the writing is so clear that this is never a problem. The text is raw, blithe and affirming. It has an earthy quality that is instantly appealing and it is to the production’s credit that every line is clearly heard. While the composition may be of greatest interest to aficionados of musical theatre, the words speak loudly to all of us. I strongly suggest that you go and hear them.

Until 17 July 2010

www.stratfordeast.com

Photo by Robert Day

Written 8 July 2010 for The London Magazine