EASILY UP TO PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS
What a top-class production this was. The cast not only gave it all they had but looked as if they were having a ball.
The Producers was an excellent choice for WWOS with its many musical numbers and an opportunity to display some wonderful costumes, notably the four elegant walk-down girls in their German-themed extravaganzas.
The indomitable Kevin Gauntlett led the cast as Max Bialystock, the failing Broadway producer with his underhand ways. Jonathan Faint as Leo Bloom, his associate producer, was his antithesis, with his comfort blanket and general spinelessness. Both excellent actors and vocalists, they made the perfect pair.
The Swedish blond bombshell was safely in the hands (or should that be legs?) of Danielle Simpson who got the accent and cuteness down to a T. She looked delicious in her series of pretty costumes and her high kicks were, well, high!
So how were the producers to find a suitable script to fulfil the aim of producing a money-making flop? Hours of late night reading unearthed Springtime For Hitler by Franz Liebkind. Simon Judd took this character to town. I loved his In Old Bavaria with those clever animated bird puppets. His comedy and timing lit up the stage. Commanding the stage in a very different way Jonathan French and Paul Mount turned out highly effective performances as Roger DeBris the camp director and his ultra-camp aide, Carmen Ghia.
The show provides an opportunity for some good cameo roles like the strident Mr Marks (David Finn), Hold Me – Touch Me (Louise Gauntlett) and a small stream of auditioning Hitlers, army personnel and police and courtroom characters.
Each of the musical numbers was first class, with Along Came Bialy taking my vote for the most spectacular with its never ending stream of agile old ladies (with men adding to their numbers), Springtime For Hitler just has to be a showstopper which it was, and Max's solo Betrayed is a clever number, summing up the plot, which was emotionally delivered.
Kevin Gauntlett not only took a lead but co-directed with Sue Finn whose choreography added so much to the production. John Hargreaves was the oh so important musical director and the time just sped by.
A really excellent show, easily up to professional standards
Theo Spring
Croydon Advertiser: 5 stars
West Wickham's production of The Producers was slick and stylish and filled the large stage of the Churchill Theatre with exuberance and panache. The sure direction of Kevin Gauntlett teamed with an excellent portrayal of Max Bialystock, surely a part he was born to play, kept the Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan humour of the show to the forefront without overplaying it. Co-Director and Choreographer, Sue Finn, produced some memorable routines for all sorts of 'movers' and 'hoofers', together with Dance Captain Jacqui Morris, and the vaudeville style of the show was exuberantly maintained. Musical Direction by John Hargreaves was sure and positive and the balance between the singers and orchestra just right. The Scenic Designs set looked well on the stage and was handled expertly by Maggie and Alan Matthews and their large stage team; I loved the hand coming out of the office wall with the telephone on Thursday - it added to the humour. Costumes were spot on and I particularly liked the costumes for the old ladies and cross dressers in 'Along Came Bialy' at the end of the first Act.
Leo Bloom, played by Jonathan Faint, was an innocent waiting for Max to pounce. As a large proportion of the show was taken up with the interplay of the two main characters, and is humour is dependant on the chemistry between them, the mix of Faint and Gauntlett's fast-paced comic timing was a treat to see. Another great comic double act was Jonathan French as Roger DeBris and Paul Mount as Camen Ghia; the two played off each other with great aplomb. The juxtaposition of Roger in evening dress with the 'Sister Act' stilettos and Paul's all encompasing body language and expressions was a joy to watch. The other great comic moments came courtesy of Simon Judd as Franz Liebkind but with just this side of underlying mad menace which the part has to have. Mention must be made of the pigeons here whose routines under the tutelage of Eileen Mortby and Pauline Whalley almost stole the show duting the Bavarian numbers, so in-time were they. Danielle Simpson as Ulla, always dressed to wow any males in the audience, played the part with confident energy and joy-de-vie particularly in the numbers 'When you Got it, Flaunt it' and 'That Face'.
Everyone played an enthusistic part and the chorus and supporing parts no less so with highlights being those involved in ' Keep It Gay', the 'old ladies' in 'Along Came Bialy' and the ensemble in 'Springtime for Hitler' and 'Prisoners of Love'. A first-rate production for all the audience who came to the show. Thanks once again to John and Julia Stone for their warm welcome and I look forward to your next production.
Chris Williams
NODA
Wesy Wickham Operatic Society's production of the zany Mel Brooks musical The Producers gave the lie to the old adage, "nothing succeeds like success". It was performed recently at bromley's Churchill Theatre, with direction by Kevin Gauntlett and Sue Finn, who also choreographed, and musical direction by John Hargreaves.
It's the story of a failed Broadway producer who hits on the idea of staging a terrible musical in order to make a profit when it folds overnight. But the musical - Springtime for Hitler - is such a spectacle of bad taste that it gharners rave reviews and huge audiences. The producer and his accountant accomplice sudddenly find themselves on the wtrong side of the law - for reasons not made entirely clear. But, of course, it all ends happily (well, sort of) with the incarcerated producers planning a prison theme musical that looks like making Springtime for Hitler seem tame.
The producers themselves - Laurel and Hardy lookalikes played by Kevin Gauntlett as the tubby Bialystock and Jonathan Faint as the lanky Bloom - were excellent. The formers wooing of various elderly financial backers and the latters babyish reliance on his blue comfort blanket were deliciously played. As the mad Nazi Franz Liebkind, Simon Judd was a splendid goggl;e-eyed loon with more than a passing resemblance to Frasier actor Kelsey Grammer.
The transverstite producer, Roger DeBris (who ends up playing the Führer himself), was a wonderfully camp portrayal by Jonathan French, paired with Paul Mount as his mincing, moustachioed assistant Carmen Ghia. Danielle Simpson was sexy and funny as the Swedish secretary (and object of the producer's lust) Ulla, and there were virtually no weak performances from the boisterous ensemble cast. On the first night, dialogue was sometimes hard to hear and the lighting a little dim (credit crunch taking its toll at last?) but that didn't spoil another crowd-pleaser of a show from this extremely talented amateur group.
Mark Campbell
Bromley Times
