New Oxford Venue

A fantastic new theatre space opens in Oxford with an unusual musical.

The Elsinore Theatre Company presents Fasettos
A Musical by William Finn and James Lapine

At the O'Reilly Theatre, Keble College, Oxford

18th - 23rd November at 7:30 pm
Running time 2 and a half hours with one interval of fifteen minutes.The O'Reilly Theatre, a brand new, state of the art venue located in the new Sloane Robinson Building in Keble College, is certainly an asset to the theatrical milieu of Oxford. It opened its doors last night for the first time and, although they were not bursting at the seams with eagerly anticipating young theatregoers, there was a clear sense of excitement abounding at the novelty of such an event.

It is said that only the Oxford Playhouse rivals the technical capacity the new studio can boast - a commendable advertisement to say the least. And not only is the stage and projection room effective and efficient, but also the auditorium itself is plethoric in its ability to metamorphosise into multitudinous seating and staging arrangements. For its first performance the configuration was not too dissimilar in size or pattern to the OFS, but I am told that with the push of a button the opportunities for promenade or circular seating, and even asymmetrical traverse - whatever that may be - are endless, with the seating capacity ranging from 180 to 250 people.

The production chosen to premiere at the new studio is a student musical entitled Falsettos. Performed by the Elsinore Theatre Company, with license to stage the British amateur, off-West End premiere, it is a show that took Broadway by storm, with Time Magazine coining it a burst of genius'.

Brimming with controversy, although handled with subtle force, the score deals with poignant issues such as homosexuality, AIDS, identity and religion, brought home through the collapse and bewilderment of a gay and fervidly confused father called Marvin. He has left his wife Trina and young son Jason to embark on an alternative life with his boyfriend Whizzer, being forced to deal with Trina's new relationship with his shrink, Whizzer's battle against AIDS and the less than kosher cooking of his lesbian next door neighbour along the way.

The cast are judicious in their handling of the complex score, and their voices really are superb. With an entire show sung and only a few moments of recitative it is amazing that such a young and relatively inexperienced cast have control over what is an exceptionally difficult musical to master. It could definitely do with a lot more enthusiasm, however, and some real chemistry between Marvin and Whizzer would have been profitable, seeing as their relationship is the fulcrum to everyone else's turmoil. I also think that many of the songs were a little superfluous and that some careful and shrewd editing of the score would have been beneficial. But the company does deserve credit for its ambition.

I would fully recommend a trip to this new theatre/studio as, not only is its technology as gimmicky as it gets, but the seats are comfy and the location superb. I strongly believe that its importance to the Oxford theatre-world is going to boundless.

Marvin: Justinian Jampol
Mendel: Mark Lowen
Trina: Chantelle Staynings
Jason: Ronan Busfield
Whizzer: Mark Schaan
Charlotte: Amy Matthews
Cordelia: Alexa-Maria Rathbone

Priducer: Corinne Furness
Director: Sam Brown
Muiscal Director: Joe Atkins
Choreography and Movement: Mel Triffitt, Alexa-Maria Rathbone

2002-11-19 17:58:12