I met with Mother in Norwich and
had a lovely Portuguese meal (you can guess which chicken restaurant we went
to) last night (9th June 2016). Was a lovely change as I don’t often
take Mother to the theatre as she has a habit of using the darkened auditorium,
despite the noise and lights from the stage, to catch up on sleep (you did well
last night Mother only one mishap in the second Act but I blame the Pinot
Grigio). We went to see All or Nothing, The Mod Musical at Norwich Theatre Royal, as she used to be a
Mod. After seeing the show we realised that Mother was a second wave of Mods in
the 1970’s/80’s not in the 1950’s (haha sorry Mother aged you by twenty years).
However we still had a fab night, were able to dance and sing along and have a
laugh imagining Nanny Cora as a late 1950’s mod with her strange vacuum like
hairdryer.
All or Nothing started its tour
last week after a run at The Vaults theatre in London until May 21st.
The musical is based on the band, Small Faces, possibly not as well-known as
their competitors of the same time however some of their music are well known
loved hits. Some people were saying as we left that they had seen the Small
Faces in and around Norwich during this time and they were awful live; these
people also said how much they had enjoyed those on stage during the
performance so that was good. I was expecting lots of music I had not heard
before as it was a Small Faces musical, which is fine I love listening to new
music, however songs by Sonny and Cher and Dusty Springfield are also part of
the song list which was a great sound. I loved the tribute to Oliver, with the
‘Consider Yourself’ number which is not part of the song list, even though they
sang a few verses. I am also not sure of
the accurate storyline about Steve Marriott (lead singer of the Small Faces)
choosing rhythm and blues over Olivier’s stage who knows, but it is a great
musical addition to a new brand of musical.
Small Faces have songs including
‘Watcha Gonna do About it’, ‘Sha La La La Lee’, ‘I’m Only Dreaming’, ‘All or
Nothing’, ‘Itchcoo Park’, ‘Tin Soldier’ and my favourite and probably one of
their best known to wider groups ‘Lazy Sunday’ (afternoon). The audience
absolutely loved the songs; even if me and Mother did not know them all we
still enjoyed the show. All or Nothing is not my favourite musical about a
band, I think that charm still lies with Sunny Afternoon (The Kinks) however
All or Nothing is still perfect if you lived in that era and the production is
funny, emotional and gets you in the Mod mode I guess.
I enjoyed how the story was put
together. The lead of the Small Faces, Steve Marriott, is obviously the
protagonist of the show. His older, dead self, narrates the whole production, reflecting
on his life after he’s lived it. This perspective of the musical I absolutely
loved and it reminded me of Act Two of Carousel. This showed a different light
to Steve Marriott too, I guess, and you see the deterioration of him, despite
the fact he is a ghost in some words, he deteriorates as his younger alive self
does too. This is where the emotionality of the musical comes from; when
Marriott speaks to his mother, what seems to be heaven or some other place the
dead congregate, it really gets you. I also think Marriott’s mother is crying
for real as the lady who plays her was connected and close to the band.
The cast are great and creator of
All or Nothing, Carol Harrison, who is no stranger to British TV screens and
best known for her role in EastEnders, plays the mother of Steve Marriott and
she is funny and heart-warming in this production. She also has a mini party at
curtain call which made me get into the mood too. Marriott is played by two
actors, his older and passed-self played by Chris Simmons, known best for his
role as DC Mickey Webb in The Bill; Simmons definitely suits a shorter hair
style yet he plays the role of Steve Marriott so well. His portrayal reminds me
off Bob Hoskins in Who Framed Roger Rabbit as everyone on stage ignores him as
he is telling the story from the grave so to speak, going back in time. Younger
Steve is played by Mark Newnham. Other band members are Ronnie, played by
Joshua Dowen, Mac played by Joshua Maddison and Kenny played by Drew-Levi Huntsman;
all up and coming actors and musicians. I loved Daniel Beales who plays various
characters within the musical, however he is really funny and, although
scripted, comes across so naturally funny; really enjoyed watching Beales on
stage. The rest of the cast play various characters and portrayls of famous
producers and musicians in this era. Sophia Behn plays a lovely Dusty even if
it is just for one scene (I did think Carol Harrison was playing Dusty so I
apologise for saying that in the interval).
All or Nothing (The Mod Musical) is
at Norwich Theatre Royal until tomorrow for a matinee and evening performances,
with tickets still available. This is a very new musical and yet I think the publicity
has been poor on it. It is worth seeing, no doubt, especially if you are a mod,
love the music of the Small Faces and lived your teens and early twenties in
the late 1950’s, well then this is the musical for you. The musical, when it
leaves Norwich goes on tour until November 5th 2016 visiting
Chesterfield, Bournemouth, Guilford, Portsmouth, Ipswich, Shrewsbury, Cardiff
and others. Please get in touch on Twitter +Aaron Burgess
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