A Small Mind At The Theatre

42nd Street as a stage musical was a long time in the making. Based on the Bradford Ropes novel first published in 1932 and created into a 1933 Hollywood movie, the musical for the stage did not appear until 1980. It was a bold move to create such a spectacle in the eighties based on a bygone era. However, with a budget of $3, producer David Merrick made the bold move a success, running for nine years before closing after 3,486 performances. So, another 43 years after that stage premiere, does the musical 42nd Street still provide a toe-tapping spectacle? The resounding answer is yes. Telling the story of a director and his drive to get his new show Pretty Lady on stage, the production of 42nd Street is a spectacle rarely seen of this magnitude on tour. It oozes quality and a large cast, admittedly cut back from a London or New York residence, but still, a bold enterprise for on the road. The cast has a collection of familiar faces and lesser-known stage stalwarts and no one is bagg

Following a four-month hiatus from theatre reviewing, I was back at Milton Keynes Theatre this week to see the iconic and fondly remembered music Annie , led in the cast by a nightmarish performance by Craig Revel-Horwood in the role of Miss Hannigan. So, is this a delight of musical theatre, or, as grotesque as the horrible Hannigan? Well, time to find out. First performed in 1976, Annie was based on a 1920s comic strip and adapted for the stage by Thomas Meehan on the book, with music by Charles Strouse, and lyrics provided by Martin Charnin. In its 47 years, it has become a perennial favourite with tours throughout the UK every few years and this version directed by Nikolai Foster keeps the charm and love everyone remembers alive. Leading the cast (of adults) is the aforementioned Craig Revel Horwood as the cruel Miss Hannigan, keeper of the orphanage where little Annie and her friends have found themselves. Revel-Horwood is clearly having fun in the role of Hannigan, but at times h