Singin' in the Rain

Singin' In The Rain
Haymarket Theatre Leicester, Tkts 0116 253 9797

Running Time: 3 hours
Review: Stewart McGill, 17 September 2004

Great to see the Leicester Haymarket open again; but is this musical past its sell-by date?Rejoice! Leicester's Haymarket Theatre has re-opened with the red carpet treatment and Paul Kerryson's revival of Singin' In The Rain is suitably celebratory. However I must admit that this was a rare occasion where Kerryson's musical theatre has disappointed and it's not for the lack of trying.

Looking at the show today it feels dated and despite a clean and almost contemporary look to the design it failed to move emotionally or raise much of a laugh in the comic numbers. Maybe it tries too hard and ends up rather sending up the genre of silent movies than faithfully recreating the problems inherent when the talkies arrived. The silent movie reconstructions are so over the top and not well executed. It's lively and very frothy, if extremely overlong.

The show needs to make its big statement, of course, with that number' and answer the question, how will they do the rain?'. Here we get a stage full of rain and it is wet but no context other than rain!

Adam Cooper is a terrific dancer but lacks the vocal power to deliver fully the role of Don Lockwood yet it is a captivating performance. The company deliver in a lively but, as everything in this production suggests, superficial style.

I hope that now the Haymarket is back in action the creative spirit returns alongside the need to busy the building and adventure can return. Some of the best evenings in musical theatre have been spent in Leicester and I hope more will come but this Singin' In The Rain is lavish fluff and nothing special. Leicester badly needs this theatre to rebuild its audience from all backgrounds and all ages, it will be fascinating to follow the journey.

Cast

Don Lockwood: Adam Cooper
Kathy Selden: Josefina Gabrielle
Lina Lamont: Ronni Ancona
Cosmo Brown: Simon Coulthard
RF Simpson: Peter Forbes
Roscoe: Claude Close
Dora Bailey: Jeanette Ranger
Errol: Dougal Irvine
Rod: Greg Pichery

Director: Paul Kerryson
Set and Costume Design: Robert Innes-Hopkins
Choreographer: Adam Cooper
Associate Choreographer: Greg Pichery
Lighting Designer: Chris Ellis
Sound Designer: Frank Bradley

2004-09-22 19:51:11