Tag Archives: Jessica Martin

“Jerry’s Girls” at the Menier Chocolate Factory

A great night out for musical theatre super-fans, this revue show celebrates Broadway composer Jerry Herman. A trio perform songs from his classics – hit shows including Mame, Hello Dolly! and La Cage Aux Folles – doing themselves and the songs proud.

The performers – Cassidy Janson, Jessica Martin and Julie Yammanee – sound great together and shine during solos. All three are stars. Martin focuses on older roles and Yammanee the ingénue ones, which sometimes helps tell a story. As for Janson… well, it’s clear she can do anything.

First created by Herman himself in 1985 (with Larry Alford and Wayne Cilento), the conceit is that we see performers both on stage and off. A lot of the action happens in a dressing room that is part of Paul Farnsworth’s set. It doesn’t really add that much. There are new pretexts for some numbers… should you want them: a fall out among friends, the start or finish of a love affair. But overall, the atmosphere crafted by director Hannah Chissick is relaxed and loose – we are here, simply, to enjoy.

There are some songs by Herman you could never free from famous renditions. But, removed from the context of the shows they were written for, the performers are liberated to a surprising degree. Sometimes you still think of the original story. Twists can seem superfluous, making you yearn for the ‘full’ show, or just miss a lyric (getting knishes into a song is a marvel I think should have been included). But this is all part of the fun for aficionados.

The chance to hear old favourites with less well-known works is, also, part of the appeal. That said, given the quality of Herman’s work, most of the show sounds familiar. More praise then for the surprises on offer. How versatile many of the songs are, how well they stand up on their own, is exciting. And not a word is spoken! Sarah Travis’ work as musical director makes her the fourth star of the show. The arrangements of the songs is often a further thrill to add to this big treat.

Until 29 June 2024

www.menierchocolatefactory.com

Photo by Tristram Kenton

“Mack and Mabel” at the Southwark Playhouse

Mack and Mabel has a reputation as a difficult musical to stage successfully. But you’d never guess that from the fine production now showing at the Southwark Playhouse. In the expert hands of director Thom Southerland the piece becomes what aficionados have long suggested – one of Jerry Herman’s finest works.

The love story, set in the early days of the movie business, is slight. But, like the films its protagonist Mack Sennett makes, it has all you need to capture an audience: “love, light, laughter”. Perhaps inspired by Mack’s love of speed, Southerland takes the piece at such a pace that you won’t have time to worry about plot. This is a glorious mix of melodrama, bathing beauties and Keystone Cops. The only disappointment is that the often-promised gorilla doesn’t turn up.

One thing everyone agrees on is how fantastic the songs are. There isn’t a bad number in Mack and Mabel and in this production they all get the delivery they deserve. Norman Bowman and Laura Pitt-Pulford are both impressive in the title roles. The latter deserves special mention for her fantastic delivery of the Barbara Cook standard ‘Time Heals Everything’. There are fine performances from Jessica Martin, as studio stalwart Lottie Ames, and Stuart Matthew Price shows he’s thoroughly on the ball, dealing with a minor wardrobe malfunction while sounding fantastic.

Lee Proud’s choreography is outstandingly ambitious and, impressively executed by the ensemble, it adds a great deal of humour. There are fine comic performances, especially from Steven Serlin as the studio’s producer – his crew may be making comedy shorts but Mack and Mabel is a grown-up affair with a famously downbeat ending. Some find this unsatisfying, but Southerland emphasises the work’s melancholy and nostalgia to create a moving, weighty experience that is not to be missed.

Until 25 August 2012

www.southwarkplayhouse.co.uk

Photo by Annabel Vere

Written 12 July 2012 for The London Magazine