What’s shorter than Woody Allen’s height? The first act of this entertaining fringe production of Woody’s famous stage play.
Don’t let that put you off, for truly great things reveal themselves throughout Act 2 and 3. For example: superb acting, a stellar set, witty lines, laughs and pathos and a tale of the human condition.
For those not familiar with Allen’s play or film, the action of
Play It Again, Sam takes place in a New York apartment on West 10th Street in 1969 (the same year as the original play opened on Broadway, starring Allen and Diane Keaton).
The story revolves around Jewish Allan Felix (
Tim Frost), a nerdy and neurotic film critic whose love life is in tatters when his thrill-seeking wife (
Josephine Kiernan) walks out on him. Watching the movie ‘Casablanca’ (several quotes and misquotes in Allen’s play stem from this classic drama noir), he dreams of being just as cool as Humphrey Bogart. Minutes later, the ghost of Bogey materialises in order to help Allan secure prospective new dates and a possible new wife – with equally hilarious and disastrous consequences!
From then on, we witness
James Kermack as Allan’s best friend Dick Christie playing matchmaker in vein, while
Amy Bailey is a revelation as his loyal yet disillusioned wife Linda.
Felicity Russell has the challenging task of portraying various new love interests while
Shaun Stone’s ‘Bogey’ does a great job of being there ‘without being there’, a shadow figure who semi-mumbles his perfectly timed one-liners in best and stoic Bogart tradition.
However, it’s leading man Tim Frost who manages to bring the right amount of gravitas to his otherwise bumbling and nervous character – he’s full of sexual fantasies but utterly hopeless when it comes to deliver even the most simple of chat-up lines. Frost neither impersonates nor caricatures Woody Allen but simply plays Allan Felix in his own way. By doing so, he makes his character believable and turns him into a real person we all can relate to.
While the 1st Act is surprisingly short and leaves one wondering where characters and pace are going, the rest is on the right pace and perfectly flows, with all the performers interacting in tune.
A big round of applause must also go to
Suzi Lombardelli’s exquisite set (the apartment is crammed full with classic movie posters and objects scattered about), while director
John Plews managed a great (and surely not easy!) job in putting this quality cast and production team together (not to mention acquiring the rights to the play).
Play It Again, Sam is a real treat not just for Woody Allen and Humphrey Bogart fans but for all those who appreciate a good night out at the theatre.
The play runs from 20th May to 26th of June at Upstairs At The Gatehouse, Highgate Village, London N6For further info, call
Box Office on 020 8340 3488 or go to www.upstairsatthegatehouse.com
To be in with a chance of winning 1000 CDs/DVDs including rare, signed and promotional copies simply ‘like’ our Award Winning facebook page here! And double your chances by following us on Twitter For all CDs, gig tickets and other music related prizes visit our sister site music-news.com competitions page here.