[Review] 42nd Street in London – infectious and airborne
Matthew Paluch sees 42nd Street: “Be prepared to be entertained. It’s a humdinger of a show with a top-notch cast.”
| Title | 42nd Street |
| Company | Leicester Curve and Sadler’s Wells production |
| Venue | Sadler’s Wells, London |
| Date | 14 June 2023 |
| Reviewer | Matthew Paluch |
Not enough research equals “bad critic”. Too much research equals “discombobulated human”! The latter being the case regarding the 43-year history of ‘the original showbiz musical’ 42nd Street. So let’s try to keep things simple…
The show (based on the 1933 American pre-code musical film directed by Lloyd Bacon, which is based on the 1932 novel by Bradford Ropes) first opened on Broadway in 1980, in London in 1984, and then for a Broadway revival in 2001. Cut to London again, or specifically Sadler’s Wells (14 June – 2 July) for the 2023, David Ian and Jonathan Church joint Leicester Curve and Sadler’s Wells production.
I saw the original London show as a mere whippersnapper, and still have clear, fond memories of a young(er) Catherine Zeta-Jones in the role of the dreaming starlet Peggy Sawyer. I also went along to the later London production in 2017 and still remember being wowed by the larger-than-life tap numbers.
In short, be prepared to be entertained. It’s a humdinger of a show with a top-notch cast. But what makes 42nd Street stand the test of time? Of course, the calibre of the performers helps, but it’s the overall format of the musical that’s the winning element for me. The show-within-a-show method – meta-theatre, or however you want to describe it. One delves into a musical about a musical, or rather how musicals get made.
Sadler’s Wells is a traditional theatre in that it has a stage, a fourth wall, and an auditorium. However, as an audience member of 42nd Street you are not just that – an attendee of the show you bought a ticket for – but you’re also a member of the audience for Pretty Lady, the new 1933 show from Julian Marsh (played by the ever-charismatic Adam Garcia). Two for the price of one, where we get to witness the innermost workings of the world of theatre, which is all at once riveting, human, complicated, and magical.
This production is as slick as, in both flow and execution, which is doubly impressive as the cast isn’t large. I counted a chorus of 14 for the big numbers, feeling minute in comparison to other shows, and subsequently saying a lot about the standard of work. Each company member gives their all throughout – some perhaps even a little too much at times. Musical theatre over-animated facial expressions can verge on the caricature.
It was certainly fabulous to hear live music at Sadler’s Wells though – a rarity indeed. The orchestra (well I’d say ‘band’ for this show) is superb. The brass, especially, working its featured role with added swagger. The brilliant array of songs and dance numbers are brought further alive by the strong, principal cast, often bedazzled to near blinding effect!
Josefina Gabrielle as Maggie Jones, the co-writer and producer of Pretty Lady, is everything you’d expect from a Broadway stalwart. Gabrielle brings her expected experience and sophistication to everything she does, even if Jones is a little bit more of a salt-of-the-earth character than she’d normally play.
Les Dennis plays Bert Barry, the other co-writer and producer of Pretty Lady, as a somewhat dithering, sweet-natured guy, and it’s a successful, well-maintained balance throughout.
Sam Lips as Billy Lawlor, the leading tenor in Pretty Lady (and the 42nd Street love interest) is really quite something. He has an extraordinary voice, both powerful in might and pure in tone, and a debonair posture (think Anton Du Beke) that makes him properly stand out from the crowd.
Ruthie Henshall is the stuff of West End legends, and her take on Dorothy Brock, the almost has-been Broadway diva, is one of sensitivity and depth. Brock could easily become pastiche and OTT – which can be funny in itself no doubt – but Henshall offers the deeper, more humane side of the character, which works wonderfully in comparison to the high drama, public persona of Brock the performer.
Garcia, as the notorious director, hits exactly the right chord with his subtle yet powerful reading and confirms he can still tap with the best of them, and hold an audience totally captive with his voice and presence.
And finally, to the show’s protagonist, Peggy Sawyer, played by Nicole-Lily Baisden. Baisden is Sawyer from the moment we first see her – all fresh-faced and naïve, yet hungry. And I wouldn’t be surprised if Baisden has a lot of these traits herself, or she’s an even better actress than I’m giving her credit for. Her face absolutely belongs on the stage with her open, genuine smile and eyes that reach far beyond the back of the amphitheatre. She dances with speed and high voltage energy, and though her voice is more than capable, I look forward to it developing in character through more experience and performance range.
I’d like to doth my top hat and cane to the choreographer Bill Deamer – what a job. Not one moment of flatness or repetition, and have we ever seen tap dancing as a form of foreplay before? Ingenious. The overall structure and content of the work keep giving, unquestionably, and not just to us the audience but also to the cast who can often barely contain their sheer enjoyment of executing Deamer’s work. And why shouldn’t they? It’s infectious and airborne!
The whole experience took me to many places. The obvious ones – 42nd Street, Broadway and the hive that is New York City. Elsewhere reflections on Some Like It Hot, Busby Berkeley, Esther Williams, Lina Lamont, Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse. And further musings over The Great Depression and how living through and coming out of it must’ve felt.
Go and see the show – enjoy the vast amount of entertainment it has to offer… and see where it takes you. Probably shuffling off to Buffalo all the way home.
Matthew Paluch was awarded a place at The Royal Ballet School in 1990 where he graduated in 1997. His first four years as a professional dancer were spent working with London City Ballet, Scottish Ballet, K-Ballet and English National Ballet, becoming a full-time member of ENB until leaving in 2006.
Matthew graduated from the Royal Academy of Dance, Professional Dancers’ Teaching Diploma in 2007, and was formerly on faculty at The Royal Ballet School. He completed his Masters in Ballet Studies at Roehampton University in 2011, has been a freelance writer since 2010 and currently works in the Law Sector.
He is a member of the Dance Section of The Critics’ Circle.
I have a ticket, so am super excited after reading this. Henshall is the best!