Matt Jenson, Gabrielle McClinton and Bayley Edmends. Photo: David Hooley
What a joy to be once more in a theatre and entertained, in this case by the super-slick cast and crew of Pippin. Billed as a musical, Pippin is more than that: it is also part magic show part cabaret and part circus. Its very set is redolent of a big top and the story itself is a story within a story. A sort of circus of life against the theatre of war. And it is a lot of fun, beautifully done.
Led by its Leading Player (Gabrielle McClinton), a performance troupe tells the story of Pippin (Ainsley Melham), a young prince whose search for fulfilment and meaning in his life contrasts sharply with the behaviour of his tyrannical father, Charles (Simon Burke).
It’s not giving too much away to say that the idealist Pippin soon learns life ain’t that easy and tyrants are hard to dislodge, that a few lessons have to be learned (think war, politics, sex and life on the land, if you don’t mind) before answers may appear. Pippin is in many ways a very simple tale, but this production unfolds it with precision and a wonderful streak of cynicism, often quite absent in musicals, runs through the lyrics and dialogue. (Book and Music/Lyrics: Roger O Hirson and Stephen Schwartz.)
Bob Fosse’s hands are all over the choreography (all credit to Chet Walker, who is in charge here ‘in the style of Fosse’). All the way from the US of A, McClinton, who is reprising a role she has played on Broadway, is mesmerising to watch. Her dance moves and delivery are sleek, shiny and polished (and it’s no surprise to read that she has understudied Chicago’s Velma Kelly). The Manson Trio number in Act I is splendid.
Aussie favourite Kerri-Anne Kennerley nearly brought the house down as Berthe, Pippin’s Grandma, with a infectiously joyful rendition of No Time At All. Not content with that, Kennerley then cast off her frock and turned into showgirl extraordinaire on the trapeze. No mean feat for a woman of a certain age! She deserved the applause.
Leslie Bell does a great job as the wicked and sexy stepmother Fastrada. Lucy Maunder is convincing as the young widow who puts Pippin back on track. She comes complete with a son Leo – a young boy with a duck (yes, Leunig, really) – played on opening night by Ryan Yeates.
There is no space to name everyone in the cast, which includes acrobats and magicians, but for this show to work as well as it does, each one deserves credit. Among the creatives, special mention to Diane Paulus (Director), Gypsy Snider (Circus Creation), Paul Kieve (Illusions), Dominique Lemieux (Costume) and Ryan Cantwell (Music Supervisor).
You couldn’t call Pippin deep. It’s all glitz and sparkle and spectacle, with colour and movement rather than story and emotion. The denouement – such as it is – is not that convincing (despite Maunder’s best efforts and sweet voice) and the final scene with Leo undoes most of it anyway, but hey, it’s a musical, so do we expect deep? And in this year of Covid and horror, and little in the way of performing arts, bring on the song and dance, the acrobats and the flame throwers, the sparkle and the razzle dazzle!
