'Ragtime' at Charing Cross Theatre

Last week we went to see the new production of 'Ragtime' at Charing Cross Theatre. I saw a production of 'Ragtime' at the rather larger Piccadilly Theatre back in 2003, it's premier in the UK. It's based on a book about turn of the century America, the early 1900s and follows the tale of three groups of people that represent the America of the time in different ways.

We have the affluent upper middle-class of Mother, Father and Younger Brother who live outside New York in a nice house and have a nice life. Father can indulge in going away for months on end as an amateur explorer and Younger Brother is still trying to find himself and escape his pointless life. Mother is, of course, Mother, keeping the household together.

We have Coalhouse Walker a ragtime piano player and writer in Harlem who falls for Sarah and, when he's away on tour, she finds she's pregnant so runs away to have the baby in secret. The third group are immigrants from eastern Europe represented by Tateh, an artist fleeing Jewish persecution with his daughter who comes to America to start a new life. These three groups all interact in different ways against a backdrop of unthinking racism, political movements, early moves for civil rights and a young America finding it's way. We also see historic figures popping up as the story progresses with Harry Houdini, JP Morgan and Henry Ford, Emma Goldman and Booker T Washington.

The story really begins when Mother finds Sarah's baby in her garden - hidden to die or hidden to be found and looked after is never explained. Mother takes in both Sarah and baby and Coalhouse turns up to win Sarah back and start a family with her and his son. Week after week he appears until Sarah gives in and agrees to see him and they fall in love again and start to think about the future.

Meanwhile, Tateh is having a hard adjusting to his new life and cuts out paper silhouettes on the street to earn a crust. His life is no better and maybe worse than if he's stayed at home so he moves from job to job with his daughter, trying to find the America of his dreams. Everything remains happy and contented in Mother's house except for the frustrations of Younger Brother who can't get the girl he loves and keeps on working at the family fireworks factory.

But then it starts to go wrong and as happy Coalhouse and Sarah get into his car to drive back to Harlem with their baby when the local racists stop the car and demand a toll and while Coalhouse calmly leaves to seek the police they destroy his care. He refuses to be quiet about it because he has rights and Sarah is mistakenly shot when she seeks help. That sets Coalhouse off on a spiral of rage and revenge, eventually become an infamous 'most wanted' criminal. Younger Brother wants to try to help and searches for Coalhouse in Harlem. When they meet and Coalhouse asks what he wants he can only blurt out 'I know how to blow up things!' and a sad partnership is formed that can only end in disaster.

Tateh finally makes a break-through and discovers the money-making potential of moving, flicking books and that leads him to moving pictures and he re-invents himself as a a movie producer and becomes wealthy. He's found his place and, after Father dies, marries Mother who he wants to put in a movie when they meet on the beach at Atlantic City.

It's a very touching story and is very timely with the current state of American politics with the Presidential election, Trump and Black Lives Matter. It's very much an ensemble piece and there isn't really a 'lead' story or character - it's about all of them. I particularly liked Anita Louise Combe who played a calm and powerful Mother, Gary Tushaw as a very emotional Tateh, Valerie Cutko as the enigmatic Emma Goldman and Jonathan Stewart as Younger Brother (whose parting lines were that he was heading to Mexico to support the revolutionary Zapata in his struggles against the government - he's found his role in life!). I'd also single out Seyi Omooba  who played Sarah's friend and has an amazing voice, confidently and powerfully singing the final song of the first half - particularly impressive since this is her first professional role. Well done, and someone to watch.

The actors played the instruments and moved the set around for different scenes and it actually worked in this and felt natural. It seems to be a theme in the last year or so for moveable sets and, like 'The Threepenny Opera', this was very effective. The stage occasionally looked a bit too full with so many characters zipping on and off but I'm pleased it's in the smallish Charing Cross Theatre rather than somewhere much bigger since it creates an intimacy and involvement with the show. The final bows were greeted with a standing ovation and, looking back, I think I should've joined in!

Go and see this show - it's excellent!

A Farewell to 'Grand Hotel'

'Grand Hotel's run at Southwark Playhouse ends tonigh but I managed to squeeze in a final viewing last night and I'm very pleased I did. I hoped the Baron would finally win through and present his roses to Grushinskaya at the station - could he make it at last? Would last night be the night it happened?

They would kiss and board the train to Vienna in a first class carriage, Grushinskaya clutching the roses to her breast and the Baron watching her every movement as she settles for the journey. Raffaela would fuss around her mistress and be pleased for her, look on lovingly and silently swear vengeance if the Baron mistreats her.

Kringelein would still go to Paris and take Flaemmchen with him to celebrate new life for as long as he can, before daring to go to America as shadows lengthen over Europe. Preysing would leave the hotel in shame and live a life as a bankrupt, Erik would be promoted to manager and the Two Jimmys would become international jazz stars. O yes, everything would be different if the Baron made it to the station.

Sadly, he didn't make it and the rose petals fell.

The Baron's theme is 'dangerous games and a carefree existence' and that's the problem he faces, his innate nobility and confidence that there's a solution to everything - except a bullet. He brings joy to his ballerina lover, he gets Kringelein a room at the hotel, he protects Flaemmschen - he's a nice person who happens to steal for a living until he's faced with real love and friendship. He puts Gushinskay's necklace back and returns Otto's pocket book. And, of course, saves Fleammchen.

There are some lovely characters in this musical, mostly flawed, but that makes them even more attractive. And they were brought to life by a great cast and it was love;y to be able to see them grow into their roles in the short six weeks run of the musical.

The Baron (Baron Felix Von Gaigern) was gallantly played by Scott Garnham (who's shaved off his beard)
Elizaveta Grushinskaya was played by Christine Grimandi
Flaemmchen was coquettishly played by Victoria Serra
Otto Kringelein was played by George Rae
Raffaela the loyal was played by Valerie Cutko
Erik was played by Jonathan Stewart
The Doctor was played by David Delve
Preysing was played by Jacob Chapman
The Manager was played by James Gant
The Two Jimmys were energetically played by Jammy Kasongo and Durone Stokes
Other roles and dancing were Charles Hagerty, Rhiannon Howys, Paul Iveson, Ceili O'Connor, Samuel J Weir and Leah West

Thank you everyone for some great performances that made me smile and made my eyes moist.

There are, of course, others to thank who made this wonderful show possible:

Thom Southerland directed
Lee Proud choreographed
Michael Bradley directed and led the wonderful music
Lee Newby designed the set and costumes
Derek Anderson designed the excellent lighting

... and lots of others. I wonder which one of you came up with the idea of the rose petals at the end? Thank you, it was a memorable experience!

If the show was on for a longer run - or transferred to the West End - then I'd definitely go back and see it again. I saw the Donmar produection twice 10 years ago and more recently went back to see 'Hair' and 'The Harder They Come' multiple times. I'm like that. When I find something I like then I like to go back and experience it again, ususally seeing something new in it each time. Good shows do that, they take you to a deeper level. You find more joy.

Some memorable moments from last night was when Scott's voice cracked at the start of his long final note in 'Love Can't Happen' (and it's a looooong note to sustain) but he powered through it and kept it going and when he buried his head into Christine's neck at the end for the final embrace and  she subtley patted his head as if to say 'you done good, don't worry'. That says so much about her and about them. Victoria was also on top form as Flaemmchen and I really warmed to George as Kringelein, particularly in the final scenes with his joy at Flaemmchen's pregnancy and Erik's new born son. Very touching moments. I hated seeing Flaemmchen on the ground in the final scene looking forward to the Holocaust - I hadn't noticed that before. And then the chandeleir fell.

I hoped the Baron would make it last night and take his roses (for passion) to his beloved. But he didn't. And the rose petals fell.

I think I'll remember this production for a long time...

'Grand Hotel' at Southwark Playhouse

There's a new production of the mighty 'Grand Hotel' at Southwark Playhouse so I just had to see it. I've said before in the Plastic Bag that 'Grand Hotel' is one of my favourite musicals so I judge productions on a different, higher, level so any production must raise it's game. And. you know what? It did!

My first 'Grand Hotel' was in 2004 at the Donmar Warehouse and I saw that production twice. That production featured Daniel Evans as Mr Kringelein, Mary Elizabeth Mastranatonio as the ballerina Grushinskaya and Julian Ovenden as the Baron. My second was 10 years later in 2014, the graduation show by the students from the Guildhall at the Silk Street theatre and they put on a smashing show and the stand-out performance for me was Rebecca Collingwood as Flaemmchen, the typist. So this was my third production.

So, what's it about? Do I really have to tell you? It's set in the Grand Hotel in Berlin in the early 1930s with all sorts of people visiting and staying, and all sorts of people working there. We see the life of the hotel over a few days and snatches of the lives of the people there, from Erik who works at the reception desk to Grushinskaya, famous ballerina on her eighth farewell tour, the young Baron who lives there but can't pay the rent, Flaemmchen the jobbing typist for hire who wants to go to Hollywood, Otto Kringelein who has just left hospital and wants to experience life before he dies and Herr Preysing the businessman. All life is here and the characters wander through, interacting now and then as well as pursuing their own stories. Another character is the magnificent chandeleir that floats over the middle of the stage, glimmering and shimmering for all it's worth.

Of course, there's more to it than that and we have the Baron and Grushunskaya finding their love only to lose it, Flaemmchen being 'bought' by Preysing who wants to take her to America and the Baron saving her from rape and Kringelein finding life. We see the characters grow and change, we learn of their pasts in snatches of song and we can only wonder at their futures. But not the Baron, our hero, who dies in the struggle to save Flaemmchen but his love, the ballerina, never knows. O how cruel fate can be, enough to bring a tear to the eye.

All of the characters have a song (or more) to their credit, a chance to shine and to immortalise their stories. The Baron - as our hero - is featured throughout but his main songs are 'Love Can't Happen' when he realises he's in love with Grushinskaya and 'Roses At The Station' when his spirit visits the railway station at which he'd promised to meet her and he can't fail at that after waiting so long for his love. Grushinskaya celebrates her new-found love with 'Bonjour Amour' the morning after her night with the Baron, finally she has found love. What can be more important and life-affirming?

Flaemmchen's big song is 'I Want To Go To Hollywood' in which we hear about her ambitions as well as the squalid life on Friedrich Strasse she wants to escape. But she fears she's pregnant so what's a girl to do? It's a great song and was very well delivered but I wasn't keen on adding the dancers to it - it's a solo song of desolation and hope and adding dancers to make it more Hollywood didn't really work for me. Rafaella, Grushinskaya's maid, has a touching song at the end when she decides that she can't tell her mistress about the Baron's death. Even Erik the receptionist has a song when he sings to his new born son over the phone telling him that he'll have everything and this nicely mirrors the song of the Baron - the Baron dies as young Erik is born. Life continues.

As does the future and the guests are fleeced by the hotel and then it becomes more vicious as suitcases are piled beneath the chandelier and the guests lose their jewelry, their clothes, their shoes and the spectre of the Holocasut looms and the chandeleir comes down.

The cast were all really good. I particularly liked Valerie Cutko as Raffaela, the maid (who I saw in 'Carousel' a couple of years ago), Victoria Serra as Flaemmchen (who I saw in 'Titanic'), Christine Gimandi as Grushinskaya (and this is her UK debut, a great show to debut in), Jonathan Stewart as Erik (who has a lovely voice) and Scott Garnham as the Baron. Sorry Scott, but Julian Ovenden remains my Baron.

I loved the penultimate scene with the Baron being showered in rose petals - a lovely touch that picks up on his song, 'Roses at the Station' (roses for passion). It's quite spectacular with the cast on chairs throwing handfuls of petals and then they fall like snow from the ceiling.

 

Well done Southwark on a great production. It sometimes felt a bit over the top with so much action taking place on such a narrow stage, all the dance routines and set pieces but overall it worked. Maybe your ushers need to remind the audience not to strecth their legs out onto the stage? The Doctor nearly stumbled by someone stretching out his legs at the wrong time. Not good. And how about that new-fangled invention of numbered seats? Go on, I dare you...

It's only on for another four weeks so enjoy it while you can!