Bring It On The Musical - WAAPA (11 June 2016)

It’s coming up to mid-June which means it’s time to talk about WAAPA’s latest mid-year musical spectacular at the Regal Theatre. Here are some thoughts in random order.

As I parked and walked to the theatre I could hear all the sounds associated with the big football game at Subiaco Oval; the roar as a goal was kicked, the echo of the stadium announcer. There were 44 supremely fit young athletes battling it out in front of a big crowd. Inside the Regal, Act 1 bursts into life with What I Was Born To Do and it immediately strikes me I am watching 39 supremely fit young performers bursting out of their skins to entertain a packed house. The comparison is not lost on me as I marvel at the sheer energy levels and fitness of these students. They look amazing in their cheerleading uniforms, all sleek, toned and terrific. Like the footballers this isn’t by chance. Such peak conditioning demands hard work, discipline and total commitment. The results are spectacular.

Then they start to move and the choreography is astonishing. From the traditional forms of cheerleading with its drilled precision, human pyramids and tosses to the more primal moves of the hip hop crew from the rival school, the dance sequences are mesmerising. This production takes the ferocity of 2015’s Urinetown and ramps it up a notch to fill the much bigger stage area.  Is there anything more thrilling than seeing a massed group of performers absolutely crush the big set piece dance routines?

By the time you read this it is possible musical theatre’s man of the moment Lin-Manuel Miranda will be basking in the glow of a record Tony Awards haul for the musical Hamilton. His contributions to Bring It On are unmistakeable. While this may not be duelling founding fathers immersed in revolutionary war and its aftermath, there are two distinct tribes engaging in their own battle here. The rhythms and language of grungy Jackson High School are perfectly captured by Miranda. It’s a crystal clear stylistic difference to the peppy Truman High School sound written by Tom Kitt (Lyrics) and Amanda Green (Music). The performers struggled a little with the rap where diction and enunciation is critical to carry Miranda’s rapid fire verbiage but the down and dirty hip hop vibe is tremendous fun.  

It also means the orchestra gets to play in various styles encompassing the gamut from rock musical to hip hop. It occurs to me that every year the musicians in the pit under the baton of conductor David King are the unsung heroes of these productions. They always acquit themselves in exemplary fashion and tonight was no different. Props then to Mister King and his musicians Tim How, Ben Hogan, Josh Webb, Jack Maher, Nathan Straker, Chris Bye, Brad Forbes, Amberlie Boyd and Ben Albert.

WAAPA has clearly decided to leverage off the success of last year’s monster hit Legally Blonde by choosing another age appropriate musical for the cast and, again, turning up the dial on all the surrounding elements. The audience was encouraged to post selfies to Instagram using the hashtag #bringitonwaapa which were then flashed up on the big screen before the show. There was a 2 minute countdown clock to announce the beginning of the production accompanied by upbeat music normally associated with major sporting events. The rear projection imagery on that big screen was excellent, outdoing last year’s attempt with live video feeds. This was a musical about young people for young people so the social media strategy was right on point. The young girls behind me squealed in delight when their picture flashed up on the screen.

There was also a sense of bigger, brighter, and better with the set, costume and lighting design. This was a pulsating show that matched the energy of its performers, was a visual feast, and sounded great. In many ways all these elements elevated what is really a paper thin plot and made it compelling.

Then there are the performances.

Hannah Burridge! What I love about the mid-year show is the ‘discovery’ of a talent who might not have been previously featured. Hannah has always been a vibrant presence in the ensemble or supporting roles in previous shows but she takes front and centre stage here and is terrific. Displaying true triple threat ability it’s her acting that maybe impresses the most as she plays the newly elected squad captain who is redistricted to another school and learns that lying and manipulating people to win a cheerleading competition comes at too high a price. It’s such a confident and engaging performance.

In this she is not alone. Rebecca Cullinan plays the biatch to perfection; Stefanie Caccamo follows up her role as the drowsy chaperone with another fabulous turn as the faithful friend and comic foil Bridget; Melissa Russo brings the attitude and sass as Danielle; while Hayden Baum threatens to steal the show with his La Cienega a total scream. Christina Odam continues to display a light touch as the unassuming tyro before morphing into the ultra-competitive villain of the piece.

In a nice reversal, it’s Joshua Firman’s Steven who is the unaware and schmaltzy partner. The women rule the roost in the world of competitive cheerleading. Jason Arrow plays Randall with understated sensitivity and Enjoy The Trip with Hannah is a lovely moment both in acting and in song.

Other highlights for me – Do Your Own Thing introduces us to the crew at Jackson High with some serious attitude; Hannah’s early ballad One Perfect Moment sets the scene for the character’s initial motivations and showcases her voice; It’s All Happening kick starts the second act with a bang while It Ain’t No Thing is another sequence that lets Stef, Hayden, and Stephanie Wall (Nautica) get a little funky; Legendary is going to be the most audacious thing you see at the Regal all year; with We’re Not Done fittingly a key moment between Melissa and Hannah that is well acted and sung with flair.

 

As I was leaving the theatre I saw Ben Elton in the crowd. He must be licking his lips in anticipation at what the third year students will bring to The Beautiful Game, his collaboration with Andrew Lloyd Webber, in August.

Then it was all over and I was outside mingling with disappointed Eagles fans with their scarves and paraphernalia. At that moment I wish I had a Jackson High baseball cap…

Directed by Jay James-Moody with Musical Direction by David King, Choreography by Michael Ralph and starring WAAPA’s third year musical theatre students ably supported by their second year colleagues, Bring It On runs until 18 June at the Regal Theatre in Subiaco. 

The Drowsy Chaperone - WAAPA (14 March 2016)

One of the highlights of the Perth theatrical calendar is undoubtedly WAAPA’s mid-year musical extravaganza at the Regal Theatre. Increasingly though I would argue that the first performance slot of a musical theatre graduating class is the one to watch with Hair (2014), Urinetown (2015) and now this stunning production of The Drowsy Chaperone in the Geoff Gibbs Theatre.

The show ticks all the boxes – gorgeous production values, a witty script, fabulous performances across the board, a fun score, and above all it is consistently laugh out loud funny. At a brisk 100 minutes with no interval it is utterly infectious and a complete triumph. It’s not hard to see why it won Best Original Score and Best Book at the 2006 Tony Awards and this class does that pedigree justice with a thoroughly entertaining outing.

The story itself is a parody of all the tropes of the musical comedy genre as a theatre lover listens to one of his favourite recordings, the fictional 1928 production of The Drowsy Chaperone. On a vinyl record no less! The show comes to life in his living room as the ‘Man in Chair’ (Ashley Roussety) forgets all about his troubles and provides witty and arch commentary about the performers, the plot, and reveals more than a little of his own back story.

The story itself swirls around the impending marriage of starlet Janet Van De Graaff (Stephanie Wall) and Robert Martin (Matthew Manahan) while a collection of characters as diverse as gastronomic gangsters, a desperate producer, a ditzy wannabe starlet, a Latin lothario, and, of course, an increasingly inebriated chaperone provide a variety of hilarious obstacles and hijinks. It catapults towards a happy ending... it is, after all, a musical... and is in the finest tradition of good old-fashioned Broadway entertainment.   

Roussety is superb as our narrator. The show starts in darkness as he expresses the fears of many an audience member – will the show be short, entertaining, and not have actors entering the stalls. His tone is conversational and I immediately relaxed into the opening number as he demonstrated excellent comic timing and warmth in addressing and responding to the audience. It’s a nicely judged performance as Roussety imbues the character with enthusiasm, passion, some snark sure but also tinged with an underlying sadness or being ‘blue’ as Man in Chair would put it. He totally grounds the production and makes the narrative device work so effectively that all the gags relating to the turntable and the vagaries of a stylus on vinyl... on vinyl... on vinyl... ahem, sorry... work a treat.

But excellent performances abound and it’s interesting that the story is constructed in such a way that there are several distinct comic pairings and every principal cast member gets a showpiece moment. Man in Chair effectively is the narrative device that links one great number after another.

The hostess for the wedding, Mrs Tottendale, is played by Melissa Russo as a somewhat dotty matriarch with an outlandishly odd accent to say the least. Her comic pair is the servant simply known as Underling who is given an amusing air of English fortitude and thinly veiled disapproval by Jens Radda. Russo and Radda work beautifully together with one of the highlights involving a glass of “iced water” that is gloriously funny in its silliness.

The producer Feldzieg (Andre Drysdale) and his potential new ingénue Kitty (Christina Odam) are irresistible as another comic pairing; the former being pressured to stop the wedding so he doesn’t lose his star; the latter exuberant in her claim to be a perfect replacement. Drysdale is in full on Groucho Marx mode as he chomps on the scenery like a not so cheap cigar while Odam impresses with an adorably ditzy characterisation of the not so bright but eager wannabe star. Both deploy exaggerated accents to good effect while Odam bounces around the set on the balls of her feet as if exploding with excitement at the prospect of being the next Janet Van De Graaff.    

Janet herself is given haughtiness and glamour by Stephanie Wall who looks stunning, sings beautifully, and sells the conceit that she is the world’s biggest and most desirable star. The song Show Off is a highlight as Wall proves adept at doing exactly that, showing off in a number of ways while feigning modesty. It’s the sort of set piece that brings all elements together – singing, choreography, direction, music, and sheer verve – to stunning effect.

That it comes immediately after another eye opening sequence – the tap dance routine of Cold Feets – by Manahan’s debonair groom and his fretting best man George (Mikey Halcrow) with a killer cameo by Radda – is testament to how wonderfully entertaining this all is.

Then there’s the drowsy chaperone herself, Stefanie Caccamo, who plays the role with such casual insouciance that her every appearance on stage is compelling. Displaying a powerful voice that she uses tellingly in her “rousing anthem” As We Stumble Along there is real swagger here and not only as the character becomes increasingly tipsy. Her comic pairing comes in the form of Jason Arrow’s amorous Aldolpho who is tasked by Feldzieg to stop the wedding by sleeping with the bride. Mistaken identities dot the story in the best Shakespearean comic tradition and Arrow laps up the over-exaggerated Latin lover stereotype with Freddy Mercury style strut and vocal dexterity.  

Samuel Welsh and Hayden Baum are the two gangsters who have their own shtick going on with bad culinary puns as they heavy Feldzieg to save Janet from wedding induced retirement. That they are pressed into service as Kitty’s backup dancers during Toledo Surprise is another comic highlight. I must also mention the ‘false start’ of the faux second act opener that is such a brilliantly pointed slap at Rodgers and Hammerstein that I was gasping at the audacity of it all.

Finally we have the deus ex machina literally swooping down from the clouds in Trix the Aviatrix (Embla Bishop) who saves the day as all the complications collide. It’s a stirring finale as Bishop leads the company in belting out I Do, I Do In The Sky with a surprising twist that involves more than the hand cranked propeller she wields on her bi-plane.

This show really is outstanding – the ensemble added vibrancy and colour; the choreography of different dance styles from the twenties is outstanding; it truly looks sumptuous with the period costuming, clever set design, and is the most startlingly lit show I’ve seen at the Geoff Gibbs Theatre; the orchestra under Musical Director David King was exemplary, and it is flat out funny. I can’t remember having a better time in a theatre in quite a while. 

Surprisingly there were a few vacant seats at the Monday evening show. I don’t expect that to last long as word of mouth already has this as one of the best shows at WAAPA in years. Sure, you can wait for the cast recording on vinyl (good luck!)... but I suggest you book yourself a ticket as this is a terrific way to start WAAPA’s 2016 performance programme.

Music and Lyrics by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison; Book by Bob Martin and Don McKellar; directed with flair by Crispin Taylor; with choreography by Bernie Bernard and Musical Direction by David King, The Drowsy Chaperone is on at the Geoff Gibbs Theatre until 19 March.