Set in 1950’s Boston, Curtains follows the story of a
pre-broadway musical whose cast and crew suffer the trials and tribulations of
not only the murder of their leading lady on opening night, but the subsequent
twists and turns of the resulting investigation. Set against the backdrop of ‘Robbin Hood’ a
musical western, this play within a play (or more accurately, a musical within
a musical) is as much about the saving of the show as much it is about the
murder mystery. As the detective leading
the investigation puts the whole theatre on lock down, relationships fray,
pressure rises and fingers are pointed.
There are plots and subplots galore, some very clever and funny musical numbers
and no shortage of jokes.
From the opening bars you can hear the refrains of Kander
& Ebb classics such as Chicago and Cabaret but this is much more than
simply another of the same. Director
Paul Foster has made sure this lesser known show stands on its own; it has a
familiarity which immediately makes it accessible yet has enough in reserve to
maintain intrigue and a freshness to encourage repeat viewings.
Jason Manford (known recently for Scarborough on TV and The
Producers and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang on stage) plays the lead character of Detective
Frank Coiffi, a wannabee thespian and amateur musical theatre star who has as much
input into resurrecting the stricken show as he does in solving the crime. Manford holds his character perfectly, part Columbo,
part Poirot with a pretty decent Boston accent to boot. He revels in the musical elements, giving us
a chance to hear a great voice and some pretty nifty dance moves and, as one
would expect his comic timing is impeccable.
Playing opposite Coiffi, in the role of Georgia Hendricks,
the show’s lyricist who is thrust into the limelight following the untimely
death of the original lead, is Carley Stenson.
No stranger to musical and comedy theatre, Carley lights up the stage
regardless of whether it’s her scene or not – she has a wonderful, powerful
voice and, as seen in the finale to act 1 number ‘Thataway’ is a very adept
dancer to boot. Her duets with Andy
Coxon as Aaron Fox, her on stage writing partner, are simply magical.
Two other standout performances are Rebecca Lock as show
producer Carmen Bernstein and Samuel Holmes as show director Christopher
Belling. Rebecca plays Carmen with strength,
style and plenty of sass, very reminiscent of the Mama Morton part in Chicago
but with the Boston dirt under her fingernails.
Samuel Holmes however, is totally English and because of that he can get
away with pretty much anything. His
Belling is acerbic, driven, suffers no fools and knows that, despite anything
on the bill, HE is the real star of the show.
Totally captivating and utterly charming.
