Anything Goes, Manor Musical Theatre Company Review
Written by Charis for Theatre and Tonic.
Disclaimer: Tickets were gifted in return for an honest review. All views are my own.
I went to see Manor Musical Theatre Company perform the 1934 show Anything Goes at Sutton Town Hall on 8th May. With music and lyrics by Cole Porter, this musical first debuted in 1934, however, it is most recently known for its 2021 London revival at the Barbican Theatre. The Manor Musical Theatre Company’s take on the show plays homage to the traditions of this production, particularly with the addition of a live band. It adds to the atmosphere of the piece and provides a rich sound which backing tracks cannot contend with. The band performed to a high standard and even added in some comical remarks within the piece to the actors.
Anything Goes, is a fast-paced musical theatre comedy set in the Golden Age of high society on the high seas. The aim of transporting the audience back to this past age is largely achieved by the performance. Most of the performance is set on the ship SS American. Featuring love, high jinks, cunning disguises, blackmail, comedy and song.
Leigh Ann James did an incredible job as Reno Sweeny her acting, singing and dancing were unparalleled. When singing alone she was able to captivate the audience and when singing as part of the group she steals the show. Leigh Ann James really embodied the attitude of a 1930’s performer.
Everyone likes an underdog and for this performance the title goes to Paul Wescott as Moonface Martin. It was particularly impressive when he held a long note during the song “Be Like The Bluebird”. The performance was a complete shock after watching his more comical performance throughout.
Dan Barnes provided a superb performance as Billy Crocker a young lad who showcased the disparity between the belief and the truth of the American dream. Barnes also had great chemistry with Paul Wescott, Sasha Barnes and Leigh Ann James throughout the scenes. His singing demonstrated an impressive vocal range and his ability to harmonise with others during duets was notable.
Jamie Wilson and Isla Davies provided strong performances as the lower class conmen Spit and Dippy. They were two of the funniest individuals to watch in the performance and they had perfect chemistry together. It was certainly believable that the pair were sneaky, mischievous and up to no good.
The set and props created by Tina Townsend were incredible and really created the atmosphere of a ship setting sail. The scale of the pieces is certainly impressive as the ship steps and the cabins were not small, creating something of that scale would have taken immense work. The set was polished and complete which is important within theatre. I would however have liked to see more of an old style to the set.
However, the performance was not without problems. The coordinated dance scenes with the whole cast were out of time and it detracted from the aim of the scene. Reno’s angles were also out of sync with each other at several points throughout the performance. The disparity in performance levels is more apparent due to the strong performance from several key actors. Due to the performance being showcased by an amateur company, there are definitely some stand outs within the performances.
It was harder to hear some of the performances over the live band, this was particularly prevalent within the group songs. Departments within a theatre need to work together for a performance to run smoothly and this could be improved upon.
There was also a disparity between the level of costumes within the piece. Reno wears arguably the most accurate wardrobe for the time and role within society. Hope’s wardrobe has also clearly had a lot of thought and research within it and as a result most of what she wears is accurate to the time. Her wedding dress in the last scene is a superb testament to the 1930’s as is Reno’s two piece outfit. Class systems have been considered within the piece as well and as a result Spit and Dippy both wear lower class brown suits, which were possibly their best. However, particularly during the song blow Gabriel blow the wardrobe of the cast was not as well considered.
Overall, I would suggest that especially given the amateur nature of the theatre performance going to see the piece is a good way to spend a few hours. While there are a few points for improvement I certainly enjoyed the performance. The positive aspects of the piece do find a way to shine through which adds to the enjoyment. Overall I would give the musical theatre piece 3.5 stars.
Anything Goes by Manor Musical Theatre company will be showing at Sutton Town Hall until Saturday 11th May.
