Blitz

The scoring of the overture does a brilliant job of setting the scene for Blitz.  The instrumentation and harmonies place us squarely in the big band era, even though, in the Milton Musical Society production, this was achieved with a relatively small 12-piece band.  And then we’re off into the chaos of World War 2 London, with the opening scene set in a crowded underground station where the residents of the Petticoat Lane area come to shelter from the air raids.  The scene was beautifully set and directed - a very deliberate chaos, with everyone playing specific parts.  The problem for Lionel Bart in writing this story is that the real villain of the piece never appears; he was on the other side of the Channel, sending over the rockets and bombs.  Instead, Bart gives us two households, both alike in dignity, in the form of the Lockes, headed up by Alfred (Jonathan Shiner), and their neighbours, the Blitzeins.  It is Mrs Blitzein (a strong performance from Vicky Wharton) who is the real anchor of the show, mixing comedy and pathos as the archetypal Jewish mother, fiercely protective of her children whilst trying to get the best for them.  We meet the two clans and their supporters in the opening scene, trading insults, but then, inevitably, there’s Carol Blitzein and Georgie Locke, who are happy to ignore their parents, having eyes only for each other.  The scene includes a beautifully executed segue from Vera Lynn singing “The Day After Tomorrow” on the wireless to the company taking over the song.  I was also delighted by the lighting effect at the end of the scene, where you could believe there was an underground train going through the station.

The evacuation of the children allows Bart space to focus on his principals; the duet “Opposites” between Carol and Georgie was particularly effective.  The act ends with Georgie off in the army, not realising that Carol has been blinded by a bomb blast whilst searching for her feckless brother, Harry (John Celea).

The children returned in Act 2 for some well-executed part singing in “Let’s Play Mums and Dads”.  After that, the focus is on Carol coping with her blindness - played to very touching effect by Katherine Lamb.  She wins the sympathy of the viewers, and the question for the audience and for Georgie is whether his love for Carol is enough to cope with her blindness.  The dilemma was brilliantly realised in Neil Tallant’s performance of Georgie’s drunken song and dance “Who wants to Settle Down?”

Blitz has a very large cast (representing the whole of wartime east London), and in addition to the work of the principals, this was another splendid performance from the Milton Musical Society ensemble.

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.