Music by Mary Rodgers, Lyrics by Marshall Barer
Directed by Anita
Davenport
Ickle Pickle
Productions
Belconnen Theatre to
25 January
Reviewed by Len Power
11 January 2019
Composed by Mary Rodgers, the daughter of famed Broadway
composer Richard Rodgers, ‘Once Upon A Mattress’ at the Belconnen Theatre
coincidentally shared its opening night with the anniversary of Mary Rodgers’
birth on January 11, 1931.
Based on the Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale, ‘The
Princess and the Pea’, the show is bursting with comical characters and a plot that
parodies fairy tales and ensures that audiences have as much fun as the
performers.
Director, Anita Davenport, has given the show a
straight-forward production tailored to the skills of her cast. In colourful period costumes by Fiona Leach,
the large cast look good and sing and dance with great enthusiasm. Alex McPherson as Princess Winnifred sings
and plays her role with an amusing street-wise assertiveness. Isaac Gordon has a good time playing the dopey
Prince Dauntless and Steven Galinec and Alissa Pearson make a strong impression
in their roles of Sir Harry and Lady Larken, a couple needing to marry
urgently.
 |
| April Hand (Handmaiden), Alex McPherson (Princess Winnifred) and Isaac Gordon (Prince Dauntless) |
Sarah Hull is good fun as the Gypsy forever forgetting to use her fake accent, Joe Moores is funny as the mute King Sextimus and Deanna Gibbs is temperamentally imperious as Queen Aggravain. Elliot Cleaves as the Minstrel and Jack Morton as the Jester also give good characterisations. As the Nightingales, Jude Colquoun, Emily O’Brien and Eilis French sing and act the comic Nightingale Melody very well.
Choreography by Jodi Hammond was nicely in period and the
funny ‘Spanish Panic’ dance sequence was especially well done. There was some uneven singing by the
principles who found singing to a pre-recorded musical score challenging
without a conductor to help them. The
songs involving the full company were the most successful.
This is an enjoyable, colourful production which will appeal
to children and adults alike.
This review was first
published in the Canberra City News digital edition of 12 January 2019.
Len Power’s reviews
are also broadcast in his ‘On Stage’ performing arts radio program on Mondays
and Wednesdays from 3.30pm on Artsound FM 92.7.
