Where: Theatre Royal, Haymarket
Watched it on: Thursday 5th June, from the circle
Rating: Could do better
The probability that this show would knock me sideways were high. I rate Miss Saigon as one of my two most adored musicals. Boubil and Schonberg write blinding tunes that stay with you long after you leave the theatre. And Ruthie. Well. Ruthie’s always going to deliver.
Unfortunately Marguerite didn’t live up to my expectations. Maybe I went in wanting too much. The writing wasn’t bad: the themes were classic B&S territory: war and love. It just didn’t feel real. The classic B&S felt a little tired. The returning riffs and motifs didn’t have that same emotional surge I’ve felt before (Martin Guerre being a really good example of where they’ve made it work to great effect).
What’s more the set changes were clunky. Loud and clunky. There was undoubtedly some very impressive set: the mirrored walls worked incredibly well, but the changes in and out often felt unnecessary, and were distracting.
That said, there was some strong characterization and some great talents among the cast. Ruthie, as expected, delivered a fragile yet refined performance. Her opposite, Julian Ovenden, I hadn’t come across before. Lovely strong voice, and delightful to have a member of the cast playing live on stage during the show. I didn’t really feel the emotional connection between the two, and I didn’t think the voices matched particularly well: the other tried and tested device, the multi-part B&S number, showed that both the lyrics and the voices just weren’t working well together.
Some plus points should be noted: the costumes were lovely. Particularly Marguerite’s main piece: a lovely red velvet number that rouched at one side and gave Ruthie an hour glass shape that every girl craves. The end. Without giving it away, there was real violence on that stage: I think Ruthie’s mic was actually ripped out of her costume!
I’m not saying it was bad. It didn’t make me cry, and it didn’t make me gasp, or laugh, or jump up and down. It was ok. The music had some lovely moments, and the orchestra were on the whole strong, and I’ve no doubt they’ll come together even more as the run continues. The cast are all strong, and on the whole working well together. It’s just not the best thing I’ve seen from these creators, and certainly not the best I’ve seen on the west end recently.
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