Mack & Mabel

On a cold Halloween evening the last thing you want is to be stood outside your theatre waiting for the Fire Brigade to give you the all clear after an alarm has been raised, but unfortunately, this is where the cast, crew, orchestra and audience of UKFD’s opening night of Mack and Mabel found themselves on Thursday. However, despite the upheaval and a slightly late curtain up, the company did not let the hiatus unduly worry them. 

Throughout Mack and Mabel there is a contradiction between the upbeat nature of the musical numbers and the downbeat reality of the unfolding story, which is perhaps why it is not always the first choice of show for Societies to tackle as finding a balance between the incongruity can be a challenge. 

The real life Mack Sennett was reputedly a “fast talking, hard-living, bullying film director” as described in the programme, with oodles of charisma and a magnetism which Mabel Normand could not escape.  Mack (Mark Grayshan) promised much of this with his opening rendition of ‘Movies were Movies’, but his characterisation through the production didn’t wholly convince. The ‘Happy Ending’ was poignant, but could have been more so if we had seen a bigger contrast between the bully and the lover.

The real life Mabel Normand was not plucked from obscurity as the show purports but rather moves from model to supporting actress to comic genius, making her way through the industry to become a headline star who had equally as many headline scandals. Mabel (Jospehine Pimm) gave a fantastic performance throughout.  She captured the comic timing, many of the idiosyncrasies and mannerisms Normand portrayed on film and the essential star quality which, understandably,  everyone around her fell in love with.  She showed control and confidence in all her musical numbers, ‘Wherever He Ain’t’ and ‘Time Heals Everything’ being particularly powerful.  There was a connection between the words and the performance which transferred over the footlights. 

Skilled support came from ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle (Paul Buttner) and Frank Capra (Stu Large), and the musical numbers they shared were a delight.   

The small orchestra gave a cohesive sound and was well directed by the MD.  The Sennet Film Unit were reinforced by a group of off stage “movie-goers” who provided extra chorus support.  Facing the audience rather than each other across the stage would have given an even stronger sound in the large Company numbers.

The Dancers, through their Bathing Beauties and Keystone Cops routines, gave us a feel for the period with some delightful choreography.  However, for the big Act Two Finale of “Tap Your Troubles Away”, whilst the dancers acquitted themselves well to the given choreography, there were opportunities missed to make this the truly spectacular number it ought to be. 

The visual design of the show worked well with a stripped back stage reminiscent of a film studio, interesting lighting, use of black and white photographic projections and the interjection of the silent movie reels which added an extra dimension.  The props and costumes were all of the era and completed the period look.

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