A blog from a cast member, how exciting! But not any old cast member, it is of course David Gillard MBE, Daily Mail Opera Critic, and occasional stage diver:
I knew Jerry Herman’s hit songs from Mack and Mabel but, never having seen the show, I hadn’t realised how good Michael Stewart’s Book was. I’ve now read the piece and I’m really impressed by Stewart’s words and cleverly constructed ‘bio-pic’ plotline – this is certainly music-theatre at its most evocative, a ‘play with music’ if you like. Stewart’s dialogue is racily authentic but he tells a great tale, too. Sennett’s reminiscences cleverly and nostalgically weave a bitter-sweet love story through an authentic Hollywood silent film pastiche of those wonderful pioneering ‘flicks’, packed with glamour, slapstick and a sense of creating innovative and iconic early movies ‘on the hoof’. It’s fast, fun and ultimately very moving, too, full of – if I may borrow Neil’s pun from the flyer - ‘reel’ people. For me it’s added a literary as well as musical buzz to the early rehearsals.
David Gillard
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