Bugsy Malone

The show is set at the time of the gangster scene in New York in the 1920s, based on events in the life of Al Capone and fellow gangsters.  It is clearly light hearted and written specifically for young people to perform.  Hence, it requires a light-hearted interpretation and lots of ‘splurge’ guns, and a lively cast of young people who can both act and sing. This was a production that you should all be very proud of, as good entertainment by a large group of young actors. 

This was a rare production in that the story line was clear and the cast were very well drilled in focussing the attention where it was needed.  I liked the bare stage feel and the gobo effect – it evoked the sense of tough times very well. The chairs, table and phone looked suitable for the period, although some of the cast did not seem to understand how to use such an old-fashioned phone.

I really enjoyed the splurge fights, which worked very well.  The custard pies possibly needed stiffer dishes to make them a believable alternative to the splurge guns. The costumes were very good; the suits for the guys were wonderful!  The Speakeasy dancers dresses were stunning, with their glitter and fringes. Tallulah and blousy were complete opposites and looked just right.  The guns were very ingenious, with their silly string canisters cleverly built in – these were very effective.

It was lovely to have live musical accompaniment, which added a lot to the atmosphere of the production.  The lighting was well handled, being relatively simple and using the gobo to good effect.  Also I really liked the stark lighting that gave dark shadows on faces at times, emulating black and white photographs of the time. 

The casting of all the leads was very good, with Fat Sam being slim and his sidekick, Knuckles, small.  Dandy Dan looked suitably scary, while Bugsy, Leroy, Blousy and Tallulah showed good contrasts in size and style. I liked the big stature of the ‘thugs’, Fizzy and Cagey Joe, who were totally convincing as the two toughs who enjoyed roughing up the opposition. They looked the part and acted mean very well, contrasting nicely with the slight stature of ‘Fat Sam’. I liked Blousy Brown’s portrayal as a rather ordinary young lady who didn’t fit into the gangland scene at all.  Bugsy Malone was played well as a rather disillusioned character, wanting to please Blousy but also trying to regain his fame as a boxing promoter and gangland fixer.  He really came into his own in the second half.  Dandy Dan was good as the gangster wanting to take over Fat Sam’s area.  He looked the part and acted it well.  Tallulah was nicely played as a showgirl.  She looked the part and acted out her role well.  Leroy fitted the role of the boxer well. The police Lieutenant and Captain were small roles but equally important as the leads in bringing in a suggestion of law and order. 

The company did really well in depicting the riots, the gunfights and the general feeling of gang culture.  It was quite something to get everyone onto the stage at once in the ending – well done!  

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