Jemma Anderson
Taking on one of MGM’s most famous musicals was never going to be an easy task, but there’s a new touring production of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers that almost captures the true heart of the magical film. The orchestrations have been given a bit of a makeover and are all the better for it, as they drive the thin story forward.
When Adam Pontipee meets Milly, and asks her to marry him instantly, she cannot wait to begin their new life in a pretty cottage on the edge of the mountains of Oregon. What she doesn’t realise is that she’s just inherited six brothers-in-law who show no sign of gentlemanly behaviour. She takes it upon herself to turn the boys into men and, over time, they become increasingly attached to the women of the village.
If there’s one thing that stands out about the film, it’s the social dance scene where the newly infatuated brothers fight the boys of the village for the ladies, and this production frames the sequence perfectly. Patti Colombo and Karl Warden’s dizzying choreography displays brilliant gymnastic and aerobic skills as well as a mixture of old style dances, and all of the company perform the routine with such vigour and energy it’s impossible to take your eyes off the stage for much of the seven-minute routine.
Sam Attwater, fresh from the anniversary tour of The Rocky Horror Show plays the head of the brothers, Adam, and performs a new take on ‘Bless your Beautiful Hide’. His singing voice is spot on, but coupled with sound issues on the night, I found a lot of his dialogue garbled and very hard to understand. Helena Blackman showed off her gorgeous voice as Milly, whilst displaying the feisty and motherly side of the character.
A tremendous cast of triple threats, adding in amazing vocals, impressive backflips and marvellous pas de deux, support both leads, but again, much of their dialogue became hard to uncover. Their trademark beautifully colourful costumes (although not always in the men’s case!) are well designed by Elizabeth Dennis and the lighting by Nick Richings is thoughtfully deliberate.
Despite the bland storyline, the show is show is carried purely on the back of the company who sing the classic songs with such aplomb that we are willing to overlook small, amateurish scene changes and clunky dialogue to get to the best part of the show – the dancing. It’s a genuine revival of a classic and well-loved show that will please audiences that loved the film.
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers is playing The Churchill Theatre, Bromley until 21 September 2013. For more information and tickets visit the ATG website.