Oh What A Lovely War

Of all years to present this musical play, this was it! 100 year anniversary of the ‘war to end all wars’ and ‘The Christmas Truce’.There are some who would say that war should never be an opportunity for entertainment even if done in parody style. Personally I have always hated anything that ‘sanitised’ the horror of man’s inhumanity to man because of religion or politics. But this (original Joan Littlewood Musical Entertainment) production managed to walk the ‘fine line’, very well.

John Fidell, the director had wisely chosen the ‘less is more’ approach to scenery, this approach works  particularly well  when used with back projection although on this occasion no back projection was used except   at the end of the production depicting a field with many black crosses (very poignant).

The characters were dressed as in an ‘end of the pier pierott show’. The black and white costumes, mostly different from each other, looked very effective but could have fitted the individuals a little better. As these costumes  became repetitive after a while it was a relief when more colour was introduced into the scenes, particularly in act 2. The sashes brought colourful relief and other costumes, especially evening dresses and uniforms were very good.

The band was good and struck exactly the right tone before and during the show with  the well known songs of the period, so well known were these songs, that they followed soldiers wherever they went … even into WW2. The younger members of the cast are to be congratulated for learning the words…songs that to older cast members and the audience (mainly middle aged and over), remember as second nature! The singing was good and strong with excellent attack. There were a few noteworthy vocal performances… Martien Leuwars singing  the German solo in ‘Silent Night’ was memorable for his excellent voice and the superb atmosphere in this scene and Ben Salter and Suzanne Brown, both showed vocal talent and aptitude in their various duets and solo performances. There were also some outstanding acting performances, Mark Yates for his superb accents and characterisation and Martien Leuwars for his skill in linking the show together, as a narrator. But together there was not a single weak link among this talented and dedicated cast. The girls when playing men, excelled and the whole cast moved from one mini scene to another seamlessly.

After a slightly confusing opening (no fault of the performers or direction) the ‘war game’ story came to life with the whole cast showing talent and flair for the recreation, albeit parody, of those terrible times. I found the retelling deeply moving, so much so that I was irritated with two people in front of me who found much of the performance funny.  I was also forced to accept that the audience just wanted to show their appreciation by applauding at times, I was so deeply involved it seemed to disrupt the flow of the storytelling.

I congratulate everyone involved in the production, from the backstage team who were visible on many occasions fixing wheels and bringing on props,  to the props team who found such good replicas of helmets , medals and the like, (I loved all the home made French hats and blue capes). Congratulations to lighting and sound for atmosphere and realistic sound effects. But I send my total admiration to ‘the team’ the cast and director for the excellent presentation of a profound and moving interpretation of this classic musical play.

I left the Somerset Hall with mixed feelings, yes I had enjoyed the production very much, but I was left with sadness for the terrible waste of life, for the children who were never born to the millions of women who lost their men in such a pointless and meaningless war! How could this entertainment disturb me so much? But it did!

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