The Producers

THE PRODUCERS

Report by Keith Scott-Savage deputising for Rachel Millar

Mel Brooks`s  irreverent, wonderfully funny musical about a sleazy Broadway producer and his less than confident partner is brought to life with this very good production.  The show stands or falls by the performances of these two characters, and Steven Foster as Max Bialystock, and OJ Wright as Leo Bloom were excellent in their portrayals, bouncing off each other in outstanding fashion, with superb discipline and quality vocals and acting throughout.  Christina Bailey as Ulla, the blonde Swedish bombshell, proved a super foil the Max and Leo, fine vocally, and her dancing a delight.  Andrew Hambleton as Franz Liebkind, the screwball Nazi, was hilarious, the `Der Guten Tag Hop Clop` number was impressive.  Mark Hargreaves as Roger, along with his camp attendants raised the laughter level even higher, particularly when in tandem with Grant Fern as Carmen Ghia.

Supported by a well drilled chorus, who also doubled as a most effective stage team, with very slick scene changes, the production moved at a good tempo.    Neat, very effective choreography, along with a top rate orchestra made for a most entertaining evening.  A shame there were a few problems with the sound and lighting at times, but that is live entertainment for you.

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