The Pyjama Game

This cheery little show from the increasingly neglected back catalogue of musical theatre gems was given a confident and sprightly airing at the Hippodrome. As we all know, the show explores the finer points of Marxist dialectical materialism as exemplified by a workers dispute at the Sleeptite Pyjama factory in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. With a series of cheery musical numbers and the opportunity for some interestingly staged set-piece moments, the show has a good deal to offer with its bright and breezy 1950s period charm. 'The Pyjama Game' is quite a demanding show in a number of different respects; the large cast list, the many scene changes (there's the factory floor, offices, corridors, the cafe, Babe's house, an outdoor picnic, Eagle Hall...) and the opportunities for big production numbers mean that this is a show which is more ambitious a challenge than many people would have you believe. I'm not altogether sure that this production was a complete success in every department unfortunately but it was certainly a worthwhile piece of musical entertainment with some memorable moments peppered throughout the evening.

To open the show, Mr Hines fills the audience in on the imminent battle between Management and Labour: the breaking of the fourth wall right at the outset makes for an interesting conceit which I would have liked to have seen more of. Blue Blezard gave another one of his indefatigable performances as the time and motion expert and if perhaps his puppyish enthusiasm had an adverse affect on his diction and comprehensibility, there was no denying his boundless energy on stage. The Company are then discovered hard at work in a splendid routine - 'Racing with the Clock' - before we meet Sid, the new boy in town as played by Josh Hindle. His handling of 'A New Town is a Blue Town' was masterful and established his take on the character immediately and with some style. Babe was played with a forthright and likeable manner by Penelope Hatfield and both she and Josh made the 'love/hate', 'will they/won't they?' aspects of their burgeoning relationship fizz throughout the show: this was an excellent partnership.

Jill Harrison's Mabel - secretary par excellence - was another magnificent portrait from a performer we don't see nearly enough of on stage in District 3 (more please Jill!) and who, as always, very nearly stole the show: a great, inspiring, confident performance here. Robert Riley was a very safe pair of hands as Prez, the union eminence with an eye for the ladies, again, a good strong performance here. Ken Horsfield was as commanding as ever as factory boss Myron Hasler and Eric Beardsworth was a wonderful Pop; warm, charming and sympathetic. There was particularly strong support from the characters further down the cast list: Helen Nelson, Sophie Greenwood and Paige Brett excelled as Mae, Gladys and Poopsie and David Smith's almost ever-present Joe provided a solid backbone to the show throughout. 'Steam Heat' was a very slick routine performed with great dash and elan in their hands. Fellow Hippodrome stalwarts Mark Brady (a most amusing Max) and Orm Greenwood (dependable Charley) also provided excellent support and the rest of the company brought life and colour to the stage in every scene.

Several scenes worked very well indeed: the aforementioned 'Steam Heat' was very polished and didn't outstay its welcome; 'Hernando's Hideaway' was a lovely number; 'I'm not at all in Love' was an affecting and confidently handled number, which also had a real depth of feeling; 'Hey There' was cleverly done and again, performed with real feeling. There were a number of smart and snappy moments on stage which worked very well indeed but unfortunately, far too many moments on stage which jarred and led to a rather disjointed feel to the narrative. 'There Once was a Man' - one of my favourite numbers in the show - wasn't particularly well served by a rather uneven tempo and some peculiar pronunciation. 'Think of the Time I Save' was a missed opportunity and seemed both rather half-hearted and rushed through at the same time. The rather wonderful dream ballet sequence was omitted altogether (I never thought I'd rue the absence of a dream ballet in a musical but I did miss it here!) and there were too many moments which didn't seem to connect up or help in moving things along, leading to a series of effective moments which didn't make a coherent whole. I was left with a feeling that there didn't seem to be much enthusiasm from the company to knit the show together; rather, to create a number of nice moments than to invest in expressing the narrative clearly. It is true that many of the faults in construction are the fault of the show rather than this production of it: what promises at the opening of the show to be a jolly clash between workers and management very soon fizzles out into a knockabout bit of nonsense and the multiplicity of sub plots and scenes which don't seem to go anywhere (and supporting characters) which form a knotty undergrowth to the main thread of the narrative don't help either. Still, there were a few occasions when these problems could have been helped rather than hindered with a more considered approach to presenting a clearer way through the story.

All that said, there were many positive things to take from the production. Josh and Penelope made a really good pairing as Sid and Babe, working together well and providing a solid and believable relationship. Jill Harrison was a majestic Mabel and the supporting players were of a consistently high standard: here is a society with a bedrock of performers of skill and ability from which to draw from: PHTC are exceptionally lucky to have such a wealth of talent at their disposal. That said, 'lucky' isn't perhaps the correct word here; societies make their own luck and the good people are clearly doing something right in nurturing and developing the talents of the members in whatever capacity. Ensemble routines were slick and showy, costumes were of the excellent quality audiences have come to expect from this society and technical support was first class as always. The Hippodrome sound gremlins seemed to be back again from time to time however but I believe moves are afoot to squash these little technical irregularities once and for all which is to be applauded. All in all, this was another pleasant outing from the Hippodrome gang which made for an enjoyable evening's entertainment. Coupled with the wonderfully friendly welcome and the great atmosphere which always accompanies every visit to the Hippodrome, 'The Pyjama Game' was another feather in the cap of the hard working team at PHTC. As always, I look forward to my next visit with enthusiasm!

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