Crazy For You

Crazy for You is a musical, which has many big dance numbers and requires a town full of men.  As the company had problems finding men for Pirates last year and many are self-confessed non-dancers I wondered what I was in for.  I did not need to worry it was a high energy, fast moving thoroughly entertaining show, with men.

Set in New York and the sleepy desert town of Deadrock, Nevada, the show requires several major set changes, which present a huge challenge on this small stage.  Never the less we were taken backstage at the Zangler Theater, New York, outside the Theater, a street scene in Deadrock, inside Lank’s Hotel in Deadrock and inside the Theater in Deadrock.  The show opened with an almost bare stage with a gauze at the back, in front of which were a table and chairs and a door in a frame representing Zanglers office.  During the Overture we see Zangler auditioning young dancers for his ‘Follies’.  Then the lighting changes, black tabs behind the gauze opened to show the finale of the last show of the season, which we are watching from backstage.  This all disappears and we find ourselves on the street outside the Theater.  We are then transported to Deadrock.  Most of the scene changes were efficiently handled and any that took a little longer were covered by music from the orchestra.

The sound balance between musicians and voices was good, although there was one point when Bobby and Polly were singing when they were overpowered.  The lighting was mixed; the general lighting was atmospheric, helping to create the street in New York and the hot desert, but the follow spots let things down a bit.  The pyrotechnics at the end were lovely.

The costumes, hairstyles and make up were appropriate, with good contrast between ‘city people’ and ‘country folk’. The Follies costumes were spot on and the finale costumes were spectacular.

The choreography and standard of dancing were excellent.  Choreographer Kara Kennedy had certainly pushed everyone out of their comfort zone.  Many hours of hard work had obviously been spent perfecting routines.

The musicians under the direction of Roger Winter played well.  There was a good balance between instruments and voices, with musical numbers being well taught.  The singing, both from principals and chorus, was of a high standard and diction was good.  Everyone looked and sounded confident.

The show had been well cast and the whole company had been encouraged to develop individual characters.  Gary Kennedy in the role of Billy Child was confident, full of energy and ‘twinkle toed’.  This is a lovely role giving the opportunity to show a wide range of characterisation from the young man with a dream of becoming a dancer to becoming Bela Zangler.  The impersonation of Zangler was clever, capturing his voice and mannerism precisely.  Emily Costa gave a spirited performance as Polly Baker, singing, dancing and acting with confidence.  David Walker gave a lovely performance as Bela Zangler the pompous impresario, maintaining the accent throughout and never going over the top, which would be easy in this role.  The scene with the two Zanglers was very well done.  Rachael Barnes transformation from the uptight gold digger Irene Roth, to ‘Naughty Baby’ was well-handled and such fun.  Chris Dixon-Lewis presented Lank Hawkins initially as an unpleasant character, making it quite obvious why Polly was not interested in him, but softens when seduced by Irene.  Pete Berry as Everett Baker, Polly’s father gave a good performance as the heart over head father holding onto the theater in memory of Polly’s mother.  Lottie Child was portrayed by Kate Coyle as a hard-headed businesswoman with no sympathy for her son’s aspirations.  But even a hard nut can be cracked with the right persuasion.  What gems of roles Patricia and Eugene Fodor are and Alison Hennessey and John Smith certainly delivered them with relished.  Natalie Britton gave a strong delivery as no nonsense Dance Captain Tess.  The follies girls and Patsy gave lovely portrayals as the showgirls singing and dancing beautifully through their numbers.  The ladies chorus gave excellent support to the show.  James Barnes, Mark Collins and Peter Minshall created the sleepy inhabitants of Deadrock to perfection, and when joined by the male chorus executed a very tricky dance complete with pick axes.

Director Heather Collins had given good direction to her cast and was well supported by her backstage teams, MD and choreographer in bringing this lively show to the stage.  She had helped everyone to create an immediate contrast between New York and Deadrock with the speed of dialogue and music being so much slower, and had helped with the timing of those wonderful one-liners, such as “Don’t be stupid who would come to Nevada to gamble?”  The show had a dynamic ending sending audiences out feeling happy.  Well done everyone.

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