It's time for my review of Carousel.
"Carousel tells the story of Julie Jordan and Billy Bigelow who fall in love one summer evening. The barker of Mrs Mullins' Carousel, Billy is known for his womanising, yet settles down with Julie despite the warnings from her aunt Nettie Fowler and best friend Carrie Pipperidge. As Julie and Billy marry their relationship becomes fraught and Billy does his best to stay out of trouble, especially when his friend Jigger offers him easy access to money."
For this brand-new revival of Carousel, director Timothy Sheader has gone to great lengths to re-work the show for a contemporary audience. The musical is now set in Britain, with several changes to the book having been made to alter the character-acts of the protagonists Billy and Julie. In addition to this, the ending has also been altered slightly. Unfortunately, these changes miss the mark. I often admire when directors choose to revamp an old classic, but in this particular instance, the alterations have fallen short. The area in which this is most prominent is the character-arc of Billy Bigelow; the show's male lead. Carousel has re-invented Billy as the embodiment of toxic masculinity, now painting him as the story's villain from the get-go. This in turn removes any charm the character once had, which ultimately weakens the plot-line. Previous productions have initially presented Billy as a charismatic individual, who grows bitter over time. By portraying him as antagonistic from the first few scenes, it becomes questionable why Julie would ever fall in love with him from the start. This production has also tried to update the themes for a contemporary audience, but this too fails to make an improvement. The mismatch between old and new elements becomes confusing, and feels disjointed at times. It's clear what the director is trying to achieve, but it doesn't quite get there. Beyond this, the show's designs also have been stripped back from previous productions, though this isn't as effective as it's intended to be. This may have worked in a more intimate setting, but the sizeable nature of Regent's Park Open Air Theatre means that the show doesn't attain the personal feeling that was planned.
Declan Bennett, as Billy Bigelow, and Carly Bawden, as Julie Jordan, were good singers, but seemed ill-matched with one another. The performers didn't have the chemistry required, making it hard to find their relationship with one another believable. Christina Modestou however is excellent in the supporting role of Carrie Pipperidge. Modestou brought a lot of energy to the piece, and really enhanced the liveliness of the production. Equally as remarkable is Joanna Riding, who portrayed Nettie Fowler. Riding had an outstanding voice, and delivered a show-stopping rendition of 'You'll Never Walk Alone'. The initial part of that song was performed a cappella, which gave Riding a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate just how talented she actually is. A special mention must also be awarded to Amie Hibbert, who was understudying in the role of Louise. Hibbert was a phenomenal dancer, and excelled during the extended ballet sequence in Act Two.
As previously mentioned, this production is significantly stripped back, meaning that the set is minimalist. This felt like a missed opportunity, as scenic design did not live up to its full potential. There were a number of imaginative ways it could have been tackled, but the end result contained very little. By contrast, the most striking aspect of the show's creative side was its choreography by Drew McOnie. In particular, the dance sequence in The Ballet was marvellous, and proved to be the overall highlight of the entire production. It was extremely slick, and helped the show to improve its pacing.
Now for my final verdict on Carousel. I give Carousel...
This production has certainly been ambitious in its attempt to re-work the show, but I still struggle to see that these changes were worthwhile. Having said that, there are still some excellent performances here, and the choreography was outstanding.
Think it should have got a higher rating? Agree with my rating? Think it should have got a lower rating? If so comment below.
-The Basic Theatre Reviewer
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