Catherine Bennett resumes the weekly look at the performing arts world, with the sad end of Jerusalem, the luck of a cabbie, and French revolt. Do you hear the people sing?
Adam Alcock reviews Nigel Kennedy playing Vivaldi's Four Seasons and his own Four Elements at York Opera House.
Catherine Bennett highlights the trends in the performing arts world today.
Jonathan Cridford reviews 'Ghosts', one of the Freshers' plays for this year.
This production of Wicked! was certainly no different. With two protagonist witches (one of which is born green), a talking goat professor and winged monkeys, this reinterpreted Wizard of Oz story takes a long stretch of the imagination to get your head around. This production makes no apologies for its outrageously absurd nature and as such provides the humour necessary to make a production of this kind a truly pleasant experience.
The main and most interesting plot to Wicked! lies in the conflict between the two female leads. Galinda, the popular blonde bombshell, falls in love with Prince Fiyero much to the chagrin of Elphaba, the Shrek-like antithesis to the aforementioned lead. As the plot unravels the unexpected occurs and Fiyero falls madly in love with the green monster-like girl. It’s all very childlike but this is actually Wicked’s redeeming feature; it’s like going back to your favourite childhood story but with fresh eyes and some interesting twists along the way.
The production is by no means perfect. Much of the storyline is lost to the brilliant, but seemingly unnecessary, full-blown orchestra. Even though the music is absolutely superb and suits parts where the whole cast are singing together, when the leading roles belt out important plot cues and there is a huge crescendo, the words are lost and you are left wondering what on earth just happened. The acoustics of a Langwith lecture theatre just don’t afford this type of accompaniment and it’s certainly a shame that the production wasn’t again held in Central Hall.
In terms of acting, the female protagonists without doubt stole the show. Polly Ingham playing Galinda lit up the stage with a beautiful voice and just the right amount of dramatic exaggeration to make the part comical without making you cringe. Her partnership with Katharine Newman playing Elphaba was perfectly cast; the girls’ voices harmonised brilliantly and the bright blonde versus dark brunette contrast highlighted the good versus (misunderstood) evil theme. Newman managed to touch the audience’s hearts on every necessary occasion and at times made you forget that she was entirely painted in green. This, I suspect, was no mean feat.
This type of camped up musical isn’t generally my bag but nonetheless the ridiculous nature raised a smile or two as the Gilbert&Sullivan loving cast provided a little unpretentious relief from the stresses and strains of exam season. Although a lot of the storyline was lost by the orchestra and some of the technicalities could have done with some perfecting, this production of Wicked is without any major complaints. For fans of musicals and for those who wished to escape the monotony of everyday life, this production of Wicked! will certainly have been a treat.
To see tonight’s performance, get yourself down to L/N/028 and pay £5 on the door. Just follow the yellow brick road…(or Vanbrugh walkway down to Langwith).
Lol, it's someone's opinion on a play, and it seemed pretty positive to me, why all the beef?
#18 says there were "children in the audience"... So, which were they - students or staff at York University?
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