Review: SUNSET BOULEVARD, Savoy Theatre

Many words have already been written about whether Nicole Scherzinger, the American actress, ex-Pussycat Doll and X Factor judge, is the right choice to play Norma Desmond, the reclusive silent movie star who dreams of a comeback. Desmond has lost the limelight, whereas Scherzinger remains a global superstar. As it happens, it is just one of many inspired choices in Jamie Lloyd’s dazzling revival.

Scherzinger has never sounded better, bringing richness and heart-breaking emotion to Andrew Lloyd Webber’s tracks. Her version of “As If We Never Said Goodbye” is ecstatic, but also hints at the precarious nature of her mind. She visibly shows a mental disintegration, a woman who cannot give up her all-consuming need to be a star, no matter what the cost. It’s a very physical performance and Scherzinger’s stage presence is almost hypnotic. She is also not afraid to balance the melodrama with a large dash of self-deprecating humour.

In a gruesome foreshadowing, Tom Francis’ screenwriter Joe Gillis climbs out of a body bag to begin his narration of the story of how he met Desmond and the consequent tragedies of their toxic relationship. Francis has huge charisma and a cracking voice. “Sunset Boulevard” remains a standout track in the show and Francis really brings the lyrics to life.

Grace Hodgett Young also makes a striking stage debut as Betty, quietly in love with Joe, with a beautiful clarity to her soprano voice. David Thaxton is brilliantly deadpan as the loyal servant Max.

As a musical, many of the songs are fairly forgettable. However, Lloyd Webber and David Cullen have reorchestrated the music and it shows, with a freshness throughout and all performances have an effervescent quality.

As we expect from Jamie Lloyd, this revival is modern, innovative and not what you expect. Like his beautiful Cyrano de Bergerac, this is a starkly stripped back show. Reuniting with Cyrano designer Soutra Gilmour, the production uses a monochrome colour palette, reflecting the black and white of Norma’s past films, with Jack Knowles’ light and shadows utilised to startling effect. A huge screen acts as a backdrop, projecting incredibly close-up, live action footage; the effect is eye-catching and reminds us of Desmond’s need for the presence of the camera lens, despite the negativity it produces. However, this trope does occasionally become distracting from what's happening on stage.

There are some very clever, deliciously meta, decisions using this screen, such as at the start of Act Two where we watch Joe walking backstage corridors, past cast members and a photo of Scherzinger in her Pussycat Dolls days, through dressing rooms and outside passageways, before entering the auditorium itself. It is also a brave decision to have Scherzinger begin Norma’s final vocals without music and in complete darkness. Brave but startlingly effective.

Fabian Aloise’s choreography is frantic and energetic, particularly in Desmond’s evocative dance with her younger self, played by an elastic-limbed Hannah Yun Chamberlain.

Huge credit must also go to the whole technical team; it may pass much of the audience by, but the quality and clarity in the RF microphones and the lack of any perceptable delay in the live action being relayed to the large screen is astonishing. I was reminded of a far less successful use of a close up, facial camera from a turgid production by Adena Jacobs at the ENO in 2018, co-incidently of Salome, the very story Norma wants to revive. Lloyd and his team shows us all how it should be done.

What deepens the resonance of this production is that, despite the success of actors such as Helen Mirren and Meryl Streep, the depressing theme of Hollywood’s distain for women when they pass a certain age remains to this day. Lloyd points starkly to a world where everyone is a commodity, there simply to be used and discarded.

This is a unique, disquieting and unexpected production and Scherzinger certainly justifies her casting. In playing a woman desperate to be looked it, it is hard to take your eyes off her.

Sunset Boulevard is at the Savoy Theatre until 6 January 2024

Photo Credits: Marc Brenner