The Likes of Us

This show proved to be something of a curious little beast. It bears the distinction of being the first collaboration between Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice in 1965 which, having thought to have been lost in the mists of time, was eventually brought back to life via the agency of a collaboration between NODA and the Really Useful Group and released for amateur societies in 2008. The show gives us a few episodes in the life of Thomas Barnardo and his crusade to help the homeless and destitute children of London of the 19th Century. I’m given to understand that at some point while this show was languishing in the archives, the script was lost and so the narrative progress of the musical has been given over to the role of a narrator (Stephen Fry lent his distinctive tones to the enterprise when the musical received its very belated premiere) and there is therefore no character dialogue. As a result, the show has a feel of a concert rather than a traditional ‘book musical’ which means that it zips along nicely with few longueurs. The show clearly played to St Dunstan’s AODS’ strengths as a society as it showcased some lovely vocal work from the ensemble and fine playing from the orchestra. As the lights in the auditorium dimmed, Philip Brady as the Narrator welcomed the audience and his assured stage presence helped to oil the cogs of the musical machinery very nicely.

The introduction of all the major characters before the overture was a pleasant way to introduce us to the principal players - I did think there was perhaps too much of very little
going on for too long from the ensemble on stage during the overture however – but Philip kept things on just the right side of entertaining with his jolly narration. We were then
plunged straight into the action at the Edinburgh Castle Gin Palace, where Rose – a lady of easy virtue – is entertaining the local cockney crowd with a lively number, ‘Twice in Love Every Day’. Olivia Callaghan gave a spirited rendition of Rose’s ditty and any resemblance between this number and Nancy’s ‘Oom-Pa-Pa’ from ‘Oliver!’ were, I'm sure, purely intentional... Olivia’s powerful voice suited both the character and the song like a glove and was a pleasure to hear. We are then introduced to Thomas Barnardo via the agency of the song ‘A Very Busy Man’ which sees our hero busily trying to sell bibles to the gin-soaked customers. Philip Callaghan was the model of the anguished hero throughout the show and this introduction to his character was established very well. Two young lovers are then introduced to us in the form of Sean Baker as Johnny and Phoebe Eade as Jenny. One assumes that before the script was lost, this pair had some sort of sub-plot of their own in the show but bafflingly, they were merely wheeled on to sing a sweet love duet and then reappear with a reprise of the same song later on when we are informed that they have decided to split up. All very odd. Nevertheless, Sean and Phoebe sang very well and made the most of their fleeting - and inexplicable – roles in the narrative! It isn’t long before Barnardo’s love interest and fellow philanthropist Syrie Elmslie pops up and we were fortunate enough to have Lauren Massey bring Syrie to life. Bringing a touch of ‘Julie Andrews’ to the stage, Lauren’s exquisite vocals made her every appearance a joy. Perhaps the most affecting and worthwhile number in the show is the children’s title song, ‘The Likes of Us’ which had a solid musical quality and was also very effectively staged. The waifs and strays finding a bed for the night on London’s rooftops was well done and the children’s chorus performed very well indeed in what might be describe as the most ‘Lloyd Webber-ish' number of the show. The spoof-patriotic ‘Lion Hearted Land’ gave us a flavourof G&S as the government worthies held forth on Great Britain’s imperial glory, reminding the audience that lyricist Tim Rice is a big fan of Gilbert and Sullivan – even if this number wasn’t half as smart as the works of the masters themselves! (‘Iolanthe’s ‘When Britain Really Ruled the Waves’ is twice as clever and three times as subversive but then again, as I could quite happily bore for England on the topic of G&S, I would say that wouldn't I...?) It’s at this point that it may be worth mentioning that there seemed to be some confusion in this production as to the roles of Lord Shaftesbury (perhaps the nineteenth century’s most famous social reformer) and the Earl of Derby (Prime Minster): I may have missed something but it seemed to me that Duncan Anderson appeared to be playing both parts at once... Nevertheless, he did a sterling job of leading the men in their stirring number. As the first half hurtles to its conclusion, we find the chippy cockneys taking against the do-good Barnardo and plan to put a stop to his interfering (‘We’ll Get Him’) and Johnny and Jenny – remember them? No, me neither... - split up for reasons that remain as inexplicable as their coming together in the first place at the start of the act, leaving poor old Barnardo feeling hard done to in the Anthony Newley-esque ‘A Man on His Own’. Philip Brady’s spry narration kept the first half chugging along at a good pace and before we knew it, the tea break beckoned.

Act two spins us straight back into the action and fortunately, we were blessed with a number of songs where we would could enjoy Lauren Massey’s lovely voice, including a
sweet duet with Phoebe Eade. Rose and the company had another song of complaint about Barnardo (‘Hold a March’) and as the grand finale beckons, we were treated to a trio of very odd little ditties: ‘Going, Going, Gone’ seemed to replace ‘Flash Bang Wallop’s wedding photograph scene from ‘Half a Sixpence’ with an auction setting (and more than a pinch of ‘Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious’ thrown in for good measure); ‘Man of the World’ was a pleasant tune and well performed by two of the younger members of the ensemble (Cait O’Rourke and Isabelle Collins) – but the wedding of the two young characters flew in out of nowhere – and ‘Have Another Cup of Tea’ rounded off the show in some style. This song managed to bring a much-needed flavour of ‘music hall’ to the show and spoofed the English tendency to reach for the teapot as a cure-all in times of trouble – and co-opting the bounce of ‘Roll Out the Barrel’ and ‘Knees Up Mother Brown’ in juxtaposition to the more sober subject matter was a clever touch. The finale made for a pleasant way to wrap up Barnardo’s mini-odyssey and the whole affair closed in a wholesome and pleasing fashion. John Barry’s orchestra provided a solid musical presence throughout the production and the sound balance between the sumptuous sound from the pit and the performers on stage was spot on. In fact, the orchestra did the fairly average score a big favour and it would be difficult to imagine a better musical reading of ‘The Lives of Us’, helped in no small measure by the very strong performances from the leading players on stage; the ladies in particular. A good deal of solidly old-fashioned choreography peppered the musical numbers which suited both the venue and the show’s subject matter perfectly. The whole company were clearly having a great time on stage with plenty of smiling faces and the children’s chorus was a lovely addition, the staging and singing of the song ‘The Likes of Us’ being the highlight of Act One. The sturdy set was equipped with the facility to create different levels and some effective stage tableaux were achieved as a result, although I would perhaps have liked a little more in the way of set dressing as some scenes looked a little spartan: nevertheless, scene changes were effected speedily and without fuss. Speaking of dressing, the costumes were all of a good standard and achieved the desired Victorian feel, although I was a little puzzled as to the choice of Rose’s outfit: for a character described by our narrator – rather unnecessarily nastily I thought! - as a ‘whore’ and a ‘tart’, she appeared to have borrowed Snow White’s costume from a passing fairy tale re-enactment group. Perhaps this wardrobe choice was an attempt to put a bit clear blue water between the character of Rose and the obvious fact that she was modelled on - ‘modelled on’ sounds that little bit more charitable than ‘a carbon copy of’ - Nancy from ’Oliver!’... As this show has the feel of a concert rather than a full blooded ‘musical’, the role of the narrator is all important and here, St Dunstan’s scored with the charismatic Philip Brady. If at times I thought the tone of the commentary was a little awkward and unsuitable to the subject matter, Philip is at least to be commended for keeping the entertainment bouncing along at a good pace and injecting some much-needed humour to the enterprise. I didn’t feel that I had learnt a great deal about the doings of Dr Barnardo - or the historical milieu of the 1860s – by the time the curtain fell but that is very much a fault of the show itself rather than this production of it. St Dunstan’s did a first-rate job of breathing life into an odd little musical and my thanks go to all of you for a very pleasant matinee performance and a very warm welcome.

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