The Guardian
3 Stars out of 5
Bugsy Malone review – splurge guns at the ready for a twinkling revival
Theatre Royal Bath
With charismatic performances and playful effects, Sean Holmes’ slick touring production is escapist fun
A giddy feeling that things might fall apart at any moment … from left, Mia Lakha, Jessica Daugrida, Kalifa Burton and Gabriel Payne. Photograph: Johan Persson
Wed 13 Jul 2022 11.23 BST
Here is a chance to press pause on the difficult business of being an adult. Led by a talented cast of nine-to-15-year-olds, director Sean Holmes’ Bugsy Malone is pure theatrical escapism. It’s based on Alan Parker’s hit film, which sees two warring gangs of mini-mobsters fight to the death with splurge guns and custard pies in prohibition-era New York. This revival doesn’t quite have the wild energy of Holmes’ dazzling 2015 production but it still twinkles with a keen sense of fun and unbridled affection for showbiz.
Nestled behind New York’s gloomy black fire escapes, Fat Sam’s speakeasy is a riot of colour. The drinks bar glows like a rainbow and the sequined dancers sparkle. Jon Bausor’s playful design ripples with easy wit and effortless dynamism. The props swoop down from above, giant dangling lighting strips make the big numbers brighter still and the elegant but oversized costumes, which threaten to engulf the younger cast, are practically characters in their own right.
Expressive choreography … Bugsy Malone. Photograph: Johan Persson
The show’s greatest strength – its young cast and a giddy feeling that things might fall apart at any moment – is also its weakness. This is a slick production with high production values (and a particularly snazzy car chase sequence) but the weaker scenes can tip over into school-nativity territory. Some of the performances feel laboured, there are frequent dips in energy and a lot of time is spent whirling around, delivering gags directly to the audience.
The very best numbers – Bad Guys and So You Wanna Be a Boxer? – are led by the older ensemble cast, who thrive under Drew McOnie’s expressive choreography. The young cast are at their best in their individual showstoppers, with the stage empty and the spotlight focused on a single performer. Aidan Oti does a beautiful job with composer Paul Williams’ most memorable number, Tomorrow, filling it with frailty and hope. Mia Lakha and Jasmine Sakyiama have impressive control over their voices, as Blousey and Tallulah respectively, and the charisma that Gabriel Payne exudes in the penultimate number, Down and Out, is verging on outrageous.
At Theatre Royal Bath until 23 July then touring until 11 February.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Author
UK Tour13 July 2022
Mia Lakha and Gabriel Payne in Bugsy Malone
© Johan Persson
Seven years after reopening the Lyric Hammersmith and some 30-plus years since Alan Parker’s film was released, Bugsy Malone begins its UK tour in Bath before a rumoured West End residency. If the electric buzz on press night is any indication, Sean Holmes’ finely realised production, aided by Drew McOnie’s sparkling choreography, will prove a summer hit.
Parker was famously against giving professional stage rights to his iconic 1976 film. Yet, as many have experienced from schooldays on and offstage, there is something inherently charming about a show that turns gangland warfare into playground games and bloody massacres into splurge gun gunk. If Holmes’ production doesn’t shy away from the darkness, always lingering an extra second on bodies splayed on the floor, it’s not long before the performers are back up on their feet, dusting themselves off, throwing themselves into the next set-piece.
The plot could be dashed off on the back of a postcard. Rival hoodlums Fat Sam and Dandy Dan are engaged in turf wars, while driver Bugsy falls in love with aspiring actress Blousey. When Bugsy is offered cash from Sam that will help him take her to Hollywood, the stage is set for these two plot strands to inter-merge. Even at a shade under two hours, the plot is stretched but it comes alive in Paul Williams’ knockout score and McOnie’s propulsive dance numbers that turn “So You Wanna Be A Boxer” and “Down And Out” in particular into showstoppers.
Holmes’ best idea is to multi-cast the leading roles with young performers and add an adult ensemble to provide ballast to the group numbers. It really works and gives the production both ragged charm and polished sheen. Generally, the singing from the young cast is stronger than the acting but Mia Lakha is a serious one to watch as Blousey, utilising her soulful voice to turn “I’m Feeling Fine” and “Ordinary Fool” into torch songs. Gabriel Payne is all huge charisma in a little frame as Bugsy while Jasmine Sakyiama’s Tallulah is wisely less vamping than Jodie Foster’s filmed take, but still shows us a showgirl actively yearning for a different life. Albie Snelson is vaudevillian fun as Fat Sam, seeing his empire falling apart one hit at a time, while Aidan Oti dances with insouciant grace as the janitor hoping for his big break.
Jon Bausor’s stripped-back set shows us the theatres’ walls, suggesting both backstage dramas and the kind of place where Al Capone took out his rivals in his pomp while providing plenty of space for tumbles, acrobats, and vaulting in the athletic choreography.
Ultimately, Bugsy Malone is a good, not a great, musical, but there is something intangible about it that means it’s almost failproof. Yet given a terrific production, as it is here, it compels an audience to rise to its feet, with or without its deliberate mega mix finale that gives its young performers one last chance to shine and leaves its audience beaming at the sheer talent that will stock the West End for generations to come.
“infectiously energetic”
REVIEWSJUL 13, 2022THEATRE ROYAL BATH
Gabriel Payne (front) and Albie Snelson in Bugsy Malone at Theatre Royal Bath. Photo: Johan Persson
Entertaining revival of the kids-as-gangsters musical that conveys both its humour and heart
The worst thing a director could do with Bugsy Malone is make it cute. Sean Holmes’ 2015 staging, which is now embarking on a UK tour, succeeds precisely because it doesn’t aim for this. It’s a fast-moving, high shine musical that is big on laughs and great at raising the tempo.
Holmes’ production, which originally inaugurated a newly renovated Lyric Hammersmith, is blessed with a gang of creatives even Fat Sam could rely on to get things right. Most notably, the combination of Drew McOnie as choreographer and Jon Bausor as set and costume designer ensures the show is always visually impressive, even when Alan Parker’s storyline loses momentum.
McOnie, in particular, is behind many of the most impressive moments in the piece. A physically demanding scene set in a boxing club is a real highlight and features some of the best ensemble dancing. There are also numerous other infectiously energetic passages of frenetic movement.
Strictly speaking, we’re here to following the tale of two New York gangsters, Fat Sam and Dandy Dan as they battle it out to own the splurge guns and be the local kingpin. Alongside this is the love story between the eponymous Bugsy Malone and the newly arrived Blousey, who harbours dreams of Hollywood and stardom as a singer. Unfortunately for Blousey, the cat-like Tallulah also has her eyes on unsuccessful boxing promoter Malone.
But the real appeal of Bugsy Malone is the opportunity it provides to watch unnervingly talented young actors pretend to be adult-aged gangsters in a musical that pretends to be a gangster movie, even though it’s actually a spoof. An element of knowingly suspended disbelief permeates the whole shebang.
Both Holmes and Bausor are aware of these layers of showmanship and use them to clever effect. Bausor’s smoke and sparkle set contains many backstage-at-the-theatre elements – it’s meant to look like the old-school idea of what a ‘show’ should look like – and Holmes plays up several breaking-the-fourth-wall moments, including an extended joke about an actor having to do his own scene change with no help from the stagehands.
Ultimately though, it’s just a lot of fun. On press night, the rotating cast of child actors included the vocally talented Jasmine Sakyiama as Tallulah and the super-sharp Gabriel Payne as Bugsy. Other standout performances came from Desmond Cole as an amusingly shrewd Dandy Dan and Albie Shelson as a swaggering Fat Sam. It was Aidan Oti’s adorably indefatigable Fizzy, however, who captured the audience’s hearts.
5 hrs ago
By John Baker@JohnBakerNewsW1Senior Reporter
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5
IF you haven’t already got a ticket to see Bugsy Malone at Bath’s Theatre Royal I’d strongly urge you to go and buy one.
The first-ever UK touring production of Alan Parker’s modern musical classic Bugsy Malone opened on July 2 and is set to run to Saturday, July 23.
If you are lucky enough to obtain a ticket, you will – quite literally – be watching a cast of 39 young performers who are more than likely to become huge ‘stars’ in the future.
Released in 1976, Bugsy Malone was Sir Alan Parker’s first feature film. It launched the careers of Jodie Foster and Scott Baio. This major stage revival features a talented young company of 39 actors, including three teams of seven children, aged from nine to 15 years, as well as adult performers.
The lead roles will be performed by three young casts in rotation with Shaun Sharma, Gabriel Payne and Amar Blackman as Bugsy Malone; Mia Lakha, Delilah Bennett-Cardy and Avive Williams as Blousey Brown; Albie Snelson, Isham Sankoh and Charlie Burns as Fat Sam; Taziva-Faye Katsande, Jasmine Sakyiama and Fayth Ifil as Tallulah; Aidan Oti, Jamie Northey-Dennis and Ellis Sutherland as Fizzy; Cherry Mitra, Kayla-Mai Alvares and Ava Hope Smith as Lena/Babyface and Rayhaan Kufuor-Gray, Kit Cranston and Desmond Cole as Dandy Dan.
In Tuesday’s performance, we were lucky enough to see Gabriel Payne (Bugsy), Mia Lakha (Blousey), Albie Snelson (Fat Sam), Jasmine Sakyiama (Tallulah), Aidan Oti (Fizzy), Cherry Mitra (Lena/Babyface) and Desmond Cole (Dandy Dan).
They are supported by an ensemble team including Georgia Pemberton, Alisha Capon, Lucy Young, D’Mia Lindsay Walker, Jessica Daugrida, Alicia Ally, Alicia Belgarde, Esme Bacalla-Hayes, Luchia Moss, Kalifa Burton, Rory Fraser, Andilé Mabhena, Thomas Walton, Ru Fisher, Mohamed Bangura, Marcus Billany, Luke Mills and Will Lucas.
You are going to see and hear a lot more about these youngsters, many of whom are already making a huge name for themselves on stage, in film, in television shows, and in radio and TV advertisements
Credit should also go to director Sean Holmes, choreographer Drew McOnie, stage designer Jon Bausor, musical director Connagh Tonkinson, musical supervisor, arranger and orchestrator Phil Bateman, associate director Franny-Anne Rafferty, associate choreographer Leanne Pinder, lighting designer Phil Gladwell, sound designer Ben Harrison, wig designer Susannah Peretz and casting directors Verity Noughton and Will Burton. Together, they have created a show that is a joy to watch from beginning to end.
Packed with instantly recognisable songs from Oscar-winner Paul Williams including My Name is Tallulah, You Give A Little Love and Fat Sam’s Grand Slam, Bugsy Malone has one of the most joyously uplifting finales in musical theatre.
In the capable hands of these young professionals, it becomes an unforgettable theatrical experience. I can honestly say it was one of the best productions I have ever seen at the Theatre Royal. Don’t miss it.
By JILL BENNETT, Wednesday Jul 13, 2022
I have rarely sat in such an excited pre-show audience. And it’s a long time since I have witnessed a whoop of expectant anticipation when the house lights went down. So this show had a lot to live up to from the get go.
Set in prohibition era New York, Bugsy Malone is a story of gangster wars, mob bosses, molls and wannabes – moving between a late night underground club, a boxing gym and the docks.
Old-fashioned weapons are being overtaken by newer, more deadly ones, so Fat Sam Stacetto has to keep his place in the pecking order by stealing Dandy Dan’s arsenal.
Bugsy falls for Blousey, a singer with a big dream, Leroy is a gentle giant and Fizzy, the floor sweeper at the speakeasy, just wants to be a dancer. This is all familiar territory – except the weapons are pies and whipped cream shooters, and almost the whole cast is under 23.
It’s a logistical headache to mount a touring production anyway, but one with 39 children and young people in the company, with a rotating cast of the main characters, is a huge achievement.
Theatre Royal Bath Productions, Birmingham Rep and Kenny Wax should be proud of what they have collectively pulled off.
There is infectious energy and sheer joy in much of it – with choreography from Drew McOnie which does a great job of storytelling with concise and concentrated wit. The cast are disciplined and talented – clearly drawn from the best theatre training the UK has to offer.
There is a hole in the show, though, where its heart should be. Even Alan Parker didn’t think much of it for years after he wrote and directed the film. Despite the best efforts of the cast, Bugsy Malone is shallow.
There’s no journey, no discovery and no message – it relies on the constant amusement of seeing children doing what adults do. On the surface.
But any lack of emotion in the show itself is more than made up for by the love coming in waves from the audience throughout. Every set piece, every major number and minor triumph gave rise to yelps of appreciation and applause.
I have no doubt that each member of the rotating main cast is good, but on the night I saw it Bugsy stole it with Down and Out. If theatre has a healthy future, which I hope it does, Gabriel Payne will be there.
The final number, an extended curtain call, was a pleasure to behold – this company is having a great time, and they deserve all the congratulations they receive.
WW News
Bugsy Malone review – splurge guns at the ready for a twinkling revival | Theatre
31 mins ago
8 1 minute read
Here is a chance to press pause on the difficult business of being an adult. Led by a talented cast of nine-to-15-year-olds, director Sean Holmes’ Bugsy Malone is pure theatrical escapism. It’s based on Alan Parker’s hit film, which sees two warring gangs of mini-mobsters fight to the death with splurge guns and custard pies in prohibition-era New York. This revival doesn’t quite have the wild energy of Holmes’ dazzling 2015 production but it still twinkles with a keen sense of fun and unbridled affection for showbiz.
Nestled behind New York’s gloomy black fire escapes, Fat Sam’s speakeasy is a riot of colour. The drinks bar glows like a rainbow and the sequined dancers sparkle. Jon Bausor’s playful design ripples with easy wit and effortless dynamism. The props swoop down from above, giant dangling lighting strips make the big numbers brighter still and the elegant but oversized costumes, which threaten to engulf the younger cast, are practically characters in their own right.
Expressive choreography … Bugsy Malone. Photograph: Johan Persson
The show’s greatest strength – its young cast and a giddy feeling that things might fall apart at any moment – is also its weakness. This is a slick production with high production values (and a particularly snazzy car chase sequence) but the weaker scenes can tip over into school-nativity territory. Some of the performances feel laboured, there are frequent dips in energy and a lot of time is spent whirling around, delivering gags directly to the audience.
The very best numbers – Bad Guys and So You Wanna Be a Boxer? – are led by the older ensemble cast, who thrive under Drew McOnie’s expressive choreography. The young cast are at their best in their individual showstoppers, with the stage empty and the spotlight focused on a single performer. Aidan Oti does a beautiful job with composer Paul Williams’ most memorable number, Tomorrow, filling it with frailty and hope. Mia Lakha and Jasmine Sakyiama have impressive control over their voices, as Blousey and Tallulah respectively, and the charisma that Gabriel Payne exudes in the penultimate number, Down and Out, is verging on outrageous.