La Musicale d’Elegance

Composers of many contemporary musicals could do well to note the structure of Gold Coast Little Theatre’s home-grown La Musicale d’Elegance. It is a quick-fit, short-season of song, music, string solos and ballroom dance.

The theatre had to substitute this creative short season following the unfortunate withdrawal of a long-programmed major play. Deftly compiled by MD Mary Walters and Director Roger McKenzie, they overtured each of two acts with the stirring, recognizable Opera music of Bizet’s Carmen and Mitch Leigh’s Man of La Mancha. The point being that these rousing curtain openers immediately bring the crowded audience into the show – ‘no waiting, folks. Step right up!’ And you have them in the palm of your hand for the rest of the time.

In a  stylized upmarket “Palm Court” setting by Leo Mevissen, the program ranges from a nineteenth century Temperance classic, Come Home, Father, treated tongue in cheek, via neglected Operettas such as Countess Maritza and The Merry Widow through Offenbach, Gershwin and Richard Rogers. In fact it was the challenge of “I’m in love with a wonderful guy” when the gremlins struck again and cast member Anne Ryan took up the song at ten minutes’ notice when fellow member, Marilyn Culell’s voice was affected by toxic fumes when she attempted to last minute polish the Grand piano! Other items by Marilyn were quickly taken up Anne Stevens and Mary Walters, singing from that very Grand Piano! It is tricky for a critic to highlight a program that is practically all highlights! If one must be singled out it was the finale that paid homage to the first serious, social musical theatre – Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein’s 1927 Showboat, led by the incredible ‘double-bass’ voice of Laurie Esmond.

Contemporary thinking is that audiences want more than just music and song; they demand that their theatre-attendance be an experience. GCLT’s La Musicale d’Elegance, plus its additional prize-offering challenge to the audience to attend in elegant, or even, extravagant finery, gave them just that.

Joel Beskin