The Producers - Musical

The Producers first opened on Broadway in 2001, and since then has been playing to packed audiences across the world. It came to the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London in November 2004. The only question is...will it flop or will it go?

Plot Summary:

Max Bialystock is in trouble. His productions are closing on opening night, and things are looking bad. Accountant Leo Bloom turns up to do his books, and makes passing reference ...
...This realisation goes via the worst play ever written ("Springtime for Hitler") and the worst director ever born (Roger DeBris). If there's any justice in the world, it'll flop...

Cast and Acting

In the current production, Max Bialystock is played by Fred Applegate, who was the voice for Cogsworth in Disney's Beauty and the Beast. He does a really good job of it, becoming a credible (sort of) Broadway producer ... more

The Producers first opened on Broadway in 2001, and since then has been playing to packed audiences across the world. It came to the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London in November 2004. The only question is...will it flop or will it go?

Plot Summary:

Max Bialystock is in trouble. His productions are closing on opening night, and things are looking bad. Accountant Leo Bloom turns up to do his books, and makes passing reference to a way where flops could be more profitable than hits - and Max's brain starts to work.

What follows is Leo's move from accountant to Broadway producer, Max's epiphany, and a realisation that friendship matters more than almost anything else. This realisation goes via the worst play ever written ("Springtime for Hitler") and the worst director ever born (Roger DeBris). If there's any justice in the world, it'll flop...

Cast and Acting

In the current production, Max Bialystock is played by Fred Applegate, who was the voice for Cogsworth in Disney's Beauty and the Beast. He does a really good job of it, becoming a credible (sort of) Broadway producer before your eyes. He does ham it up rather, but the part really calls for that type of character - he's ultimately a wannabe conman, swizzling old ladies out of their money to fund his failing productions.

John Gordon Sinclair (Gregory's Girl) plays Leo Bloom, again he does a really good job at portraying the character - he has the mannerisms of a rather neurotic young man down perfectly, and he steals a few scenes with some superb comic moments. The point at which he returns to work before throwing his lot in with Max is, I thought, one of the best scenes in the production.

The character of Carmen Ghia is played by James Dreyfus, who has previously appeared in Gimme Gimme Gimme (GGG) and Thin Blue Line. Dreyfus is perhaps the most easily recognisable "face" on stage in this production, and I found that slightly off-putting. It's noticeable that the character he plays here is remarkably similar to the one he played in GGG - a rather camp young man with overblown mannerisms and character - but again, he does it exquisitely. Another scene stealer - particularly when Max and Leo first go to meet Roger the Director. The way he exits the stage has been carefully choreographed to get the maximum mirth from the audience.

Franz Liebkind, author of the worst play in the world, is played by Nicolas Colicos, Roger DeBris by Conleth Hill, and Leigh Zimmerman takes the role of Ulla, the leading lady. On the night I saw it, Leigh Zimmerman was ill, and the part was played by understudy Lisa Donmall. All of these actors did a great job with their parts. It's slightly worrying how camp most of them were, but it's all part of the script! Franz Liebkind in particular has to be portrayed very carefully, as it would be easy to turn him into a figure of either hate or fun. Remarkably, Colicos manages to achieve neither - yes, there are times when you wonder whether you really should be laughing at the man, but there are also times where the pathos wins through.

All in all, I thought that the quality of both actors and acting on the night was superb, and definitely added to the overall success of the show. They really do make the most of the fact that the production is taking the mickey out of their oeuvre, hamming it up on all possible occasions.

Singing/Sound/Songs

The sound and the singing were good throughout on the whole, which is reassuring since this is a musical! One slight flaw I thought was in Leo's voice - it was rather wavery and weak at a few points, particularly when reaching for higher notes. This isn't a problem as such, since actually it suits the character to have a weaker voice - especially when compared to Max - but did jar from time to time.

Franz's voice was superb, and wholly unexpected. It's put to good comic use, and manages to get the sadder moments across with no loss. It's definitely one that booms out into the rafters.

Carmen's voice is rather weak, but I certainly wasn't expecting James Dreyfus to be able to sing (perhaps I'm too cynical!) - he certainly was better than I expected, at any rate. Since Carmen doesn't get many singing parts, it's not really a problem at all, and I only mention it for completeness sake.

The songs are such a huge part of this show (well, it's a musical after all...), and they fit very well into the overall script. They don't overpower - there are scenes which are completely spoken, unlike some other musicals in the West End. These are definitely in the minority, however, and it's all to the good.

From the first "Opening Night" belting out to the closing Finale and the unexpected "Goodbye" at the curtain call, the songs are well performed and sung. The chorus does a good job of providing backing, and some of the numbers are very intricate, featuring a number of different parts, coming together to make a surprisingly good whole.

Dancing

The dancing isn't as noticeable as the singing in this production, but there are some excellent moments. One of the highlights of the show is the Stomp-like performance of the little old ladies (in Little Old Lady Land). If you're wondering how little old ladies manage that, just remember the zimmer frame!

The dance is modern in feeling, with a few folk type movements, but rather than complicated choreographed dances, it's more about the movement between characters, and the timing that that needs. Fortunately, the timing in this production was impeccable, and the full comic effect was achieved almost every time.

Scenery

The scenery worked well - for most of the play it was a New York skyline in the background, with a variety of foregrounds being brought in as needed. These included a theatre exterior, Max's appartment/office, and Leo's workplace, as well as Franz's pigeon loft and the interior of the theatre.

The scene changes were done very smoothly - although you did notice that staging was moving around, it all went without a hitch, and it all seemed to be automated - gone are the days of blokes in black moving things around on stage.

All in all, the scenery was very effective and really added to the show, especially during Leo's realisation that he hates his accountancy job, and towards the end of the production where Leo and Max consider what musicals they will put on next.

Ticket Information

Our tickets cost £49 for the stalls - expensive, but great seats. We were underneath the grand circle, but only just, so had a great view of the whole stage. There aren't many offers on tickets for this musical yet (I suppose it's too new still), but during May lastminute.com are doing some offers, so it's worth keeping an eye out for them.

Tickets are available through all the usual outlets, including direct from the box office at the theatre and over the phone or internet from agents.

Thoughts

Overall, I thought that this was a superb production. Bizarrely, it doesn't seem to have many memorable songs in the way that I'd expected - a few days later and I'm having trouble remembering more than the refrain to most of them. What really stands out in my mind is how funny the production was, in a slightly risque, smutty kind of way. I was slightly shocked by the bad language and quantity of innuendo throughout, although having seen a Mel Brooks film or two previously, perhaps I shouldn't have been.

I'd definitely recommend this for mid-teens upwards, I don't think it's suitable for pre-teens due to the language and smut. If you can look past that - and judging by the gasps and tuts I heard during the show I'm not convinced that everyone could - then it's a fabulous night out for a group of friends or a couple.

It's not a production that I'd heard much about previously, and I don't know much about Mel Brooks's work. However despite my initial reservations when hearing that this show was the one I would be seeing (it was a trip with work) I thoroughly enjoyed myself, and would willingly go back and watch it again. 

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