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London,
Nicholas de Jongh's rating
Reader rating
Dame Judi Dench with Simon Callow in The Merry Wives Of Windsor
While an epidemic of song and dance productions spreads through the West End, the Royal Shakespeare Company embarks on an expensive gamble, takes leave of the straight stuff and inflicts this flamboyantly awful, musical version of The Merry Wives Of Windsor upon us.
I came out whistling in the dark, lamenting the poverty of music and songs and the lumbering, heavy-handed performance-style.
Gregory Doran, adaptor and director of what is surely Shakespeare's weakest play, describes this farcical-comedy of social come-uppance as a "great Shakespearean orange" from which he, the composer Paul Englishby and lyricist Ranjit Bolt have laboured for two years, "trying to extract all the juice".
On the evidence of last night's performance the trio have little more to show for their commitment than dryish segments, with excess pips and peel.
The Merry Wives Of Windsor, in which John Falstaff aims to seduce either the married Mistress Ford or her friend Mistress Page and altogether misses, was turned operatic by both Verdi and Vaughan Williams in their highly individual styles. By contrast Englishby's untuneful score is, as Dryden wrote in one of his famous sneers, "everything by starts and nothing long".
Its fifteen songs sound mistily derivative, variously abounding with faint echoes of Ivor Novello, Vivian Ellis, Sandy Wilson's The Boyfriend, Les Miserables and My Fair Lady, with Andrew Lloyd Webber-style ballads for the would-be lovers, Martin Crewe's ardent Fenton and Scarlett Strallen's bland Anne.
Tap, tango and beating time on pots and pans add to the mixed stylistic effect. The lyrics of Ranjit Bolt, an experienced translator but new to song-writing, constitute a wit-free zone in which you are left to wander, savouring phrases of choice ineptitude: "Mix our souls in mutual bliss" "my heart is ready to crack" and "you shine so dazzling and so bright" are just a few of the assorted horrors.
In the course of three hours there are only three minutes of musical and emotional impact. Unsurprisingly Judi Dench supplies all of them. Aproned, vigorous and disguised in a cute wig of frizzy halforange curls, Dame Judi, who is wasted as Mistress Quickly, French Dr Caius's housekeeper, three-quarters speaks and a quarter sings Honeysuckle Villain.
She beautifully delivers this poignant lament for her broken heart and its nonchalant breaker, Simon Callow's vastly upholstered, swaggering and excessively blustering Sir John Falstaff, before happily disappearing with Brendan O'Hea's Pistol who looks young enough to be her son and old enough to know better.
The production, which undercuts the socially pointed comedy with farcical caricature, is confusingly set in a no-man's land. Stephen Brimson Lewis's Elizabethan houses and rural backcloths are offset by costuming of all periods.
The dull Mistresses Ford and Page (Alexandra Gilbreath and Haydn Gwynne), who are never gleeful enough about their Falstaff baiting, are got up in Fifties dresses.
Alistair McGowan's unconvincingly jealous Ford dons Victorian garb and farcically scrabbles like a wild animal through that laundry basket, where Falstaff is thought to be concealed. Ian Conningham's Nym, with his crested hair, looks Seventies punkish.
Doran's irritating, frequent directorial tactic of standing his actors in a virtual row, from where they tend to speak at us rather than to each other, accentuates the production's artificial air, to which only Dame Judi's fine Mistress Quickly proves a spirited, splendid exception.
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I have to confess to being dissappointed, on the whole, with the production. An after performance discussion ended with agreement that Dame Judy was probably not well as her voice was clearly faultering and she made obvious mistakes in several numbers; Simon Callow's Falstaff was 'amusing' but not exciting; and, rather surprisingly, Alistair McGowan stood out for having an excellent singing voice and overall gave a good comic performance.
Some rather nasty overacting from other characters e.g. red faced Scotchman character improvising unnecessarily, and where did they get Mr Page from - has he had an acting lesson? Along with a score and costuming concept that didn't know where to place themselves meant that overall it never quite gelled as you hoped it would. Barbie and Ken lookalikes as the romantic leads did not work either - although nice vocally. Maybe this is because whilst being the woman that everyone is chasing, we never actually hear her say enough to form an opion about her; or maybe the fact that she is a pretty blonde is all that really matters - how modern!
I guess this proves to me that musicals have a naff quality that you either love or hate. It's hard to keep the subtlty of Shakespearean characterisation whilst braking in to song every five minutes, and it would have been even worse if they had tried! A nice idea but missed the mark.
- Rachel, Leamington Spa
Isn't it good that audiences don't take the critics seriously? It was a wonderful night out; we loved the sets, the cast were superb, there were some incredibly funny moments and I think they intended it to be derivative - I wonder who else chortled at Simon Callow's Falstaff in his hip-bath and compared it with Colin Firth's Mr Darcy. The choreography was excellent, too. I hope I am as sprightly and full of stamina as the two Denches when I get into my seventies!
- Sandra Lanigan, Vale of Evesham
The ninety minute drive so Startford (my first visit) was worth EVERY minute. The production was slick, the musical numbers bright and varied. I loved the set and the lighting, and the sound was perfectly balanced. Falstaff was played flawlessly by Simon, as were the wives. All in all, a fantastic night out at the theatre. The only drawback being the INCREDIBLY cramped seating in the balcony. I am returning to the show in January, with seats in the stalls, so hopefully that one fly in the ointment will be eradicated.
- Steve, Berkshire
I think the critics must have been watching a different show to me last night, I found it very entertaining and the casting spot on. Haydn Gwynne and Alexandra Gilbreath were great as the Merry Wives as were the rest of the cast, can't wait to see it again.
- Linda, Sandhurst Berkshire
I think Nicholas is being generous! The music score was about as dull as dull can be. No problem with the girls and Dame Jude somersaulting across the stage, made me gently smile (A doppeldanger, of course), and the kid with a pumpkin for a helmet running flat out into a flat (Deliberate) also elicitated a near smile. What has all this to do with with this wonderful picture of Middle Class England in Elizabethan times... and there lies the rub! Doran seemed clueless as to whether he wanted a pantomime, a Circus or a broad farce. Oh that might make them laugh... leave it in. A Western Hoe down,a stomp, a Keystone Kops chase for Falstaff... and all poorly done. While I would happily run with the girls in a "proper production"... the blokes were way off the pace. Ugh. Alistair McGowan throwing Brook away (or not understanding?). When I think of some great Fords I have seen Ian Richardson (Apoplectic with jealousy) Nicky Henson (Suicidal with jealousy). From Mc Gowan we get nothing. Callow had little or no idea of "The Big Fella" great lines were thrown away (Forgotten?), cut. Where was the lovable lust and twinkle. Hernes Oak went for nothing.... all attempted flash, no heart... NO NOTHING. All this mish mash of tosh and twaddle at £38 for a Sat seat for a preview... second from back row in the Stalls. At my age I have a finite number of evenings left in my life, I cannot afford to waste them on this garbage
- David Lippiett, Horndean, Hants
This is a wonderful production. Ignore the critics. It's absolutely hilarious and totally refreshing. The smaller parts are brilliantly cast. This is something special and somewhat shocking. Congratulations on Honeysuckle Villain Mr. Englishby.
- Sophie Duijn, Belgium
