SHOW BOAT | STAGE REVIEW
Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Bay, Tue 23 July
The original 1927 production of Show Boat was ground breaking for not only using an interracial cast, but also portraying controversial subject matters from addiction to racial discrimination. Show Boat is said to be grandfather of modern musicals taking the art form to levels beyond just light entertainment.
What the production manages to do perfectly is subtly incorporate these heavy controversial topics without it ever interfering or feeling out of place with each of the musical set pieces. The juxtaposition between the two worlds of ‘White and Black’ is powerful, with the last scene of the show being composed brilliantly to visually evoke these harsh differences.
The mammoth task undertaken by the cape town opera to not only perform such a revived musical, but to risk trying to sell tickets and find an audience on the back of what is seen to be an ‘old’ musical. It was really a breath of fresh air that the Cardiff theatre scene needed, amongst the vapid, content safe production of films turned musicals.
The soulful music of Jerome Kern was perfectly brought to life by Cape Town Opera and the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra. The first rendition of Ol’ Man River was met by an arousing applause. Otto Maidi’s voice was perfectly matched to bring to life the heart breaking yearning of the song. His stand out performance really anchors the show (excuse the pun) and elevates it to a really marvelous experience.
But don’t get the impression that the whole musical is totally depressing in any way, with wonderful dance sequences on the Missippi levees and burlesques houses that capture the nostalgic feeling of the heart of the South long ago.
The performances given by the main cast were all outstanding. The sweet and humorous performance of the Captain Andy by Graham Hopkins gave a pleasant softness, and Angela Kerrison was wonderful as Julie a heartbroken mixed-race singer. As well as lovely performances from Blake Fischer as Gaylord Ravenal, Magdalene Minnaar as Magnolia and Nobuntu Mpahlaza as Queenie.
It isn’t often that you walk away from a performance and with every step you take from the theatre the more and more you begin to think and love everything about the show you just saw. The more I ponder on it the more beautiful the whole production seems to me and that’s the greatest test of powerful art.
The production really deserves every great review it gets. It is simply the best show I’ve seen this year.
words JAYDON MARTIN