Sondheim's 'Saturday Night' at Jermyn Street

Hidden away in the tiny basement that is London's Jermyn Street Theatre is a new production of a relatively unknown gem of a show - Saturday Night - with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Casablanca screenwriters, Philip G. and Julius J. Epstein. And in the intimate theatrical world created for the piece by director Tom Littler the gem glistens and gleams with delight.

Saturday Night, Sondheim's first ever musical as composer and lyricist, was written in 1954 but when the show's producer, Lemuel Ayers, died, the planned Broadway opening never happened. The world premiere of the show, personally revised for the occasion by Sondheim, finally took place in 1997 at London's Bridewell Theatre and two years later it at last reached a New York stage. Now it is back in London with a minimalist "actor-muso" production that perfectly captures the mood and "feel" of Jazz Age New York and draws the audience into the story in a way that makes them almost feel that they are in the middle of the action.

The show's somewhat whimsical plot, based on the Epstein brothers play Front Porch in Flatbush, takes place in Brooklyn in 1929 and concerns a group of middle-class bachelor buddies who are constantly frustrated on Saturday nights because they cannot get a date. The central character, Gene, who has a rather insignificant job as a Wall Street runner, has visions of enjoying the glitzy high society life he sees all around him in Manhattan and dreams up various verging-on-the-illegal "get rich quick" schemes. While attempting to crash a society party he meets Helen, who eventually helps to convince him that love and friendship are more important than money but not before his scheme seriously misfires and he almost lands in jail.

The score is ample proof that, even at a young age, Sondheim was a master of deftly clever lyrical manoeuvres and was capable of producing seriously beautiful melodies. For example, the haunting So Many People, the bouncy and witty bittersweet homage to New York, What More Do I Need, and the soaring chorus number One Wonderful Day - are the equal of songs written at the master musical theatre songwriter's peak.

Musical director Tom Attwood's cleverly scaled down orchestrations never make the music seem bare and the actor-musicians succeed in weaving the instrumentals seamlessly into the action, allowing the excellent vocals of the show's cast to brilliantly show off the quality of the songs. David Ricardo-Pearce's totally credible performance as Gene and Helena Blackman's subtly balanced and vocally beautiful portrayal of Helen are backed by a collection of polished and energetic performances by every member of the highly talented ensemble (Joanna Hickman, Nick Trumble, Joanna Hollister, Charlie Cameron, David Osmond, David Botham, Harry Waller, Lloyd Gorman and Lee Drage).

This is a musical theatre production that captivates its audience from the first unexpected onstage crash of a drum to the final harmonious note of the finale with energy, wit, charm, great songs and great performances. In the words of Mr. Sondheim, "What more do (you) need"?

 

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