The Drowsy Chaperone

This was such a clever idea.  A musical set in the apartment of this solitary man, the Man in the Chair, who was obsessed with musicals.  His absolute favourite being the fictional "The Drowsy Chaperone", set in the 1920's.   As he puts the record of this on his turntable the show comes to life in his living room.   Suddenly the stage is filled with all the elegance and style of that era.  The central theme is the imminent marriage of the beautiful young couple but there are many twists and misunderstandings and much fun before the story reaches its happy conclusion.  This was debuted in the late 1990's but I had not seen it before.  

The set so well depicted the sort of apartment that a single man would be comfortable living in.  Downstage left were his armchair and record player and it is to here he returned after mingling amongst the other characters, who would be in a state of freeze.  

There are many named characters in this musical and a number of others who are more than a chorus.  They needed to play many different characters and monkeys!  Regrettably too many to comment on individually.  The movement was beautifully choreographed and performed with not a hint of a weak link.  So much work, by everyone, had clearly gone into making the different characters alive, interesting and fun.  

The link throughout the story was The Man in The Chair.  From the opening moments, he set the mood for the evening.  Lovely relaxed manner, somewhat sardonic, and a great American accent.  Excellent diction, every word was heard, as it was with the entire production.  

The young couple was played by two very talented seventeen-year-olds.  The bride to be, Janet Van De Graaff, wore the most gorgeous costumes, her hairstyle was stylishly 1920's, she moved beautifully and her singing was glorious.  Likewise her fiance, Robert Martin, who had captured the feel of a young beau of that era with elegance, style, and a lovely singing voice.  The Drowsy Chaperone herself,  enjoying the hospitality just a tad more than a chaperone should,  was so elegantly played.  

So many lovely songs, gloriously sung.  The band was excellent and because the sound was well balanced it was easy to enjoy every word and note.    

For a show to be successful, there are so many areas that need to work together, and they did.  There was a strong feeling of cohesion, of a superbly directed production.  The costumes had the glorious look of that era and the actors wore them and moved in them completely naturally.  The hairstyles and make up for the ladies and men were just right. It was easy to understand how The Man in the Chair with his solitary bachelor existence was so obsessed by the glamour.  Lighting and sound were excellent,  complimenting the production.  

It is difficult to write without using superlatives.  I just wish that the general public could be persuaded to go to see something they don't know.  You deserved to have  "House Full" signs up outside.  The audience was in raptures, they stood in gratitude for a fabulous evening of wonderful escapism.  The memory of this will stay with me for a long time.

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