Dogfight

Dogfight the Musical. Book by Peter Duchan and the original film was by Bob Comfort. Music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul best known for Dear Evan Hansen and The Greatest Showman, to name but a few.

A simple set with 5 white screens on wheels and brown boxes moved around by cast was all that was needed to create the scenes on a Greyhound bus, The Diner, bedroom, bridge, streets, dance hall, locker rooms, war scene, mirrors, arcade and stage. Then various props helped bring the scene to life in a simple but effective way as the cast and stage crew moved around the scenery so as not to disrupt the telling of the story.  Scenery by Mark Ross and Dave Bamford. Props by Steph Niland.

White cyc at the back of the stage helped enormously with the lighting giving various effects on the scenes and imaginative colour use throughout, with added dry ice which worked well in the war scene creating the right atmosphere. Lighting  by Jack Findlow. Sound was good throughout apart from one cast member’s microphone was scratchy at times. Sound by John Ormerod.

Costumes looked good and there were many costume changes for some of the cast. The soldiers looked good and believable although maybe the Bernstein character should have had a buzz cut or shorter hair for authentication of the period, but I get that’s a big decision for an actor to make. Costume by South Manchester and cast.

Choreographer was Jenny Quelcutti and whilst not a dance-type show the movement was in keeping with the story and the characters and some lovely motifs were created and repeated true Martha Graham style. The walking movement scenes were great considering the small space Jenny had to work in. Excellent work.

Ceri Graves as Musical Director had some beautiful voices to work with and the score was not easy - so good job. The male chorus at times did have pitching issues but that is not to take away from some strong moments where the songs were beautifully performed and came across well to the audience - the various locations around the San Francisco scene and Before It’s Over was particularly strong, as was the Finale: Take Me Back. Which elicited a few tears around the audience. Ceri also played keyboards. Scott Mitchell guitar, Jon Henderson violin, Paul Hickman cello, Sophie Sully bass and Dan Bennett percussion.

Richard Ross is the Director and for me it’s great to see a show I have never seen before - a breath of fresh air. The subject matter is hard as it’s about men disrespecting women for a bet. This backfires on a few of them - one being the lead character realising his mistake fairly early on and another picking a woman who is actually more intelligent and savvier than him. The use of stage and the flow worked well in the small space as scene changes went on behind the action keeping the pace up. The cast of 11 all had well defined characters not bleeding into each other and making it an eclectic mix of people. I have to say I was unsure of what was happening when Rose and Eddie were in the bedroom and the cast were on the periphery with flowers, it took me a while to realise it was ‘de-flowering’ - I hope I got that right and if I didn’t, love it when theatre is open to interpretation.

The cast were Jeandanel Antwi playing Fector and Liam Dodd playing Stevens, they also took on other roles and George Merryweather played Gibbs and one of the dogfight ladies (that really worked). They all played a big part in the war scene as their characters.

Faye Allison played Ruth and a lady of the night in an intense scene. How to take a part as Ruth and not saying much until the end and get all the laughs. Great facial expression, so funny. Steph Niland played Mama and other parts I have to say loved the concentration and commitment as the bus drivers and the constant movement to give the impression of the movement of the bus (I felt I could see the road ahead).

Matt McGoldrick as Boland and Christopher Shoop-Worrall as Bernstein were the perfect foil as mates of Eddie. Each one having their own characters they all worked well together and you could believe they were friends. The one always egging his mates on the unsure goofy one. Philippa Shellard-Ross as Marcy and other characters. Marcy has Boland’s number and plays the game. Great characterisation and was a great energy injection.

Ben Mackenzie as Eddie Birdlace was great casting and even though giving lots of bravado you could see the vulnerability in him. Working well with as the Three Bees and Rose, Ben took us on Eddie’s journey of self-discovery. Taylor Henwood as Rose Fenny was a delight. Starting off vulnerable we saw her grow into a confident woman and wow, what vocals! Ben and Taylor working in sync with each other gave us the love story we wanted.

Last but not least was Jon Gardner - what can I say from start to finish he had us laughing. The first character on the bus, to the lounge singer but loved the snotty waiter. His looks and body language, so funny. Fabulous to play so many characters and bring a different intention and energy to each part.

The cast thoroughly looked to enjoy every minute of this production and that transcended into the audience and the standing ovation was justified.

Thank you for the invitation and hospitality, South Manchester must be very pleased with this production and if you missed this production, you missed a treat.

 

Liz Hume-Dawson

District 5 Rep

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