The Producers

The Producers a musical performed by Pilkington Musical Theatre Company, on Friday, 23rd September 2022 at The Theatre Royal, Corporation Street, St. Helens.

‘The Producers’ opened in 2001 having been adapted for stage from the 1967 film of the same name. This wonderfully funny musical, written by Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan, tells the very funny story about ‘Hitler’ the Nazis, Accounting Fraud, the Criminal Justice System, Jail, the Sex lives of elderly ladies and several other taboo subjects all aimed at causing maximum controversy! Set in 1959 New York… the once ‘King of Broadway’ Max Bialystock, is down on his luck due to the fact that all his shows closing on opening night!  After another Broadway flop, Bialystock meets and teams up with a timid accountant Leo Bloom in a ‘get-rich-quick’ scheme or at least that’s what their expectations were!

It has been just over three years since I last saw Pilkington Musical Theatre Company on stage… 11th October, 2019 to be precise when they staged ‘Oliver’ at The Theatre Royal… so much has changed since then, but what had not changed was the enthusiasm, energy, effort, camaraderie and the abundance of amazingly talented folk that Pilkington’s always have on stage!  This production has been in waiting for two years… was the wait worth it… ‘without doubt’!

The Production Team… was led by the ever so experienced James Kirby (Director), who not only directed the production, but also sneaked in with a small cameo role… ‘Kevin’ in ‘Rogers Team’, well done James, be ever so proud sir!  Anna Whittle (Choreographer) did a great job with the choreography, loved some of the intricate movement which played to the strengths of the entire cast … be ever so proud, Anna. Great job!  David Wall (Musical Director) was thrown in at the ‘deep end’ having been ‘called in’ with just over a week to opening night to stand in for Colin Ashton-Hunt.  Can I take this opportunity, on behalf of myself and NODA, to wish Colin a steady recovery and we all hope that he’s back, fighting fit, very soon!  Congratulations one and all for not only ‘keeping this musical alive for two years’, but for gathering an amazing ‘cast’ who were well rehearsed and as soon as those lights came up… were ready and willing to give it their all... be proud!

Where to start? When you find yourself looking at a cast of thirty-five, all of whom worked their socks off from start to finish, it’s difficult to start saying someone was better than someone else when there were so many great characters and great performances on that stage!  But I do feel it would be remiss of me not to ‘stick my neck out’, yet again, and identify MY ‘fab five’ …   My ‘Showstopper’ wasn’t that difficult a decision if I’m honest… Andrew Marsh’s portrayal of ‘Max Bialystock’ was up there with the best!  Powerful stage presence, wonderful characterisation with mannerisms and facial expressions aplenty, Andrew was a perfect fit for this part!  Blessed with a wonderful singing voice…his rendition of ‘Betrayed’ in Act 2 was amazing… be ever so proud Andrew, outstanding job sir!   Don’t think you can mention one without the other… Max’s sidekick/partner ‘Leo Bloom’ was played ever so well by Adam Hurst.  Another who created a great character and looked totally comfortable throughout (didn’t really need his ‘baby blue blanket’ for sure!). Adam has good stage presence, believable at all times, be ever so proud Adam! Sarah Johnson gave us a great performance as the flirtatious, seductive ‘Swedish Beauty’ – ‘Ulla’.  Sarah worked ever so well with the two boys, whilst creating a wonderful character of her own! Another blessed with great stage presence, looked the part, great singing voice, wonderful accent… be proud Sarah great job!  Seb Farrell took on the role of ‘Roger De Bris’ with great aplomb!  The gay, flamboyant Director, who lives with all his equally flamboyant ‘Production Team’ consisting of ‘Carmen’ played by Andrew Rauer; ‘Brian’ played by Dru Fitzgerald; ‘Kevin’ played by James Kirby; ‘Scott’ played by Nicholas Rankine; ‘Shirley’ played by Suzi Davies; and last and certainly not least ‘Sabu’ played by the outrageous Elliot Bailey.  Seb himself created another totally believable character, who, along with his ‘Production Team’, provided us with some ‘belly laughing/side splitting /comedic moments’… be proud Seb, be proud team - great job!  Ben Greenall played wonderfully well the ‘Hitler Worshiping’… ‘Franz Leibkind’. Franz is the playwright of ‘Springtime for Hitler’ the play that Max and Leo believed would be a flop!  Ben just oozed stage presence, comedic timing and created a totally believable character. Loved the scene with ‘pigeons and the coop’ and the whole performance of the song ‘Springtime for Hitler’ was a real winner for me… well done Ben, be ever so proud! 
 
The Ensemble: included Luke Montague as a ‘Stormtrooper’; Di Glover, Katie Griffin, Chloe Pennington and Beth Stratford as ‘Usherettes’; Pauline Doyle, Jean Aspinall and Ann Connolly ‘Old Ladies’.  Freya Anders, Mia Clayton, Rachel Blakely, Annabelle Dudley and Lily Roylance (‘Tappers from the Deborah Lister Academy of Dance’), Emily Caldwell, Dave Aspinall, Eric Lawton, Ryan Greenall, Shelia McDonagh, Teresa O’Brien, Dawn Mee, Bernadette Paul, Isobel Johns-Howard, Janis Dowling, Ellen Hourihan and Emma Fildes.

The Band… under the guidance of ever so talented and experienced David Wall (Musical Director) who was a late substitute for this role. David had under his watchful eye - Corey Gerrard (Keys), Mike McKay (Drums), Trevor Bartlett (Percussion), Jez Murphy & Paul Warder (Trombone), Cliff Ray & Claire Southward (Trumpets), Kathryn Dunphy, Sarah Dutch, Emily McArthur, Niamh Boland and Tom Evans (Woodwind), Don Turnbull (Violin), Adam Dutch (Bass) and Ellie Guenault (French Horn). Great sound… felt, at times, the volume slightly overpowered the singer… but nothing that really affect the overall production.  

Staging/Set/Tech… an amazing ‘set’ from ‘Scenery Solutions’ provided the perfect backdrop for this production. The set and scene changes were handled superbly by Theatre Staff and by the ‘Friends of Pilks’ all of whom should be congratulated.  Lighting/Sound… under the watchful eye of the Theatre Royal Staff was, as always here at The Theatre Royal really good.

Costumes/Props… costumes were fabulous, in keeping with the times supplied by ‘Charades’ Theatrical Costumiers from St. Helens, Pleasure Folk AMS and by the cast!  Props were apt and used well. 

From the belly laughing, the cheers, the applause throughout and the ‘standing ovation’ at the end, there was little or no doubt about the success of this production which was a fitting tribute to the obvious time, effort and commitment shown by everyone involved in finally getting this show to stage … congrats to everyone!

It was so great to be back watching Pilkington Musical Theatre Company do their ‘thing’… thank you so much for inviting Susan and I we thoroughly enjoyed the production.  Thanks also to Kerry Taylor for her welcome and for looking after us!  Cannot wait to see the PJ’s early next year… and hope to see all you guys back on stage in the very near future!

Stay safe and keep well…
‘STRONGER TOGETHER’

Jim Briscoe
NODA North West
District 6 Rep

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