The Producers, Wolverhampton Grand Theatre - review with pictures
From goose stepping to gay men in gold glitter, The Producers is guaranteed to offend, but everyone is too busy giggling like girls to take it personally.
It’s got high-energy dancing, perfectly-timed duets and a healthy dose of dirty humour – not to mention a gloriously distasteful musical about Hitler.
Wolverhampton Musical Comedy Company has done a wonderful job of bringing this wacky classic to life. Created by American comedy legend Mel Brooks in 1967, the story is laced with insults and makes mockery of race, religion, gender and sexual orientation. But the vulgarity is carried off because it is all in good taste and the clever cast from this local amateur dramatic group make every character charming and easy to like.
Down-on-his-luck Broadway producer Max Bialystock ropes nervy accountant Leo Bloom into a scheme to produce a musical that is bound to be a sure-fire flop, realising there’s millions more to be made from their investors than creating a theatrical hit. And so begins their journey to find the worst director, the worst actors and bring to life the worse script in history - Springtime for Hitler.
Local performers Greg Yates appears as Bialystock, with Karl Steel as Bloom, and boy can this pair melodise – Yates’s bold, brassy voice as Bialystock pairs beautifully with Steel’s lighter, lyrical notes to make their musical numbers a triumph.
The local am dram group have really put their stamp on the show, each of the sets has serious attention to detail – from eye-popping cityscapes to the humdrum accounting office – the backdrops really help suck you into each scene. Not just a pretty picture, the sets also provide comedic entertainment - I’ve never laughed so hard at a bunch of pigeons cooing.
The dance routines are perfectly synchronised and the am dram company have had a ball with the costumes. With men in stockings, a cross-dressing director and grannies dancing with zimmer frames in little old lady land, there’s so much creativity and thought put into the clothes and props.
Although some of the humour falls a little flat, perhaps in part because the audience are so absorbed in taking all the razzle dazzle in and keeping up with the fast-paced wisecracks, generally speaking the jokes are well delivered.
A special shout-out must go to the high-kicking Nazi supporter Franz Liebkind, played by Dan Smith. Hopping around the stage in Lederhosen while professing his love for Hitler, he brings bundles of energy and enthusiasm.
Also worthy of a mention is theatre director Roger Elizabeth De Bris and his assistant Carmen Ghia. Flamboyantly gay and outrageously over-the-top, these two are a riot and take satire to the next level – when police raid the producers’ apartment, the gloriously camp pair look to hide, with Carmen saying ‘Quick darling, back to the closet’.
Not forgetting Rosie Harper as the luscious Ulla, Bialystock’s buxom secretary who leaves Bloom breathless and flustered. She kept the audience enraptured during her solos and perfectly played the part of the Swedish showgirl.
You can’t help smiling throughout this satirical spectacle, guffawing at the gags, watching the tap dancing with wide eyes and laughing at all the funny facial expressions as the producers’ money-making plan backfires.
