Give My Regards to Broadway – Upstairs at the Gatehouse

Give My Regards to Broadway continues at Upstairs at the Gatehouse, London until 5 August 2018.

Star rating: three stars ★ ★ ★ ✩ ✩

Give My Regards to Broadwayis an unabashed love letter to the musicals of yesteryear, spanning hits from Cole Porter and Irving Berlin to Richard Rodgers and the Gershwin brothers, and takes its audience from the birth of Broadway as we know it to the eve of its Golden Age.

The evening takes the form of a back-to-back musical revue helmed by four reasonably fresh faced musical theatre professionals, and backed on this occasion by two thirds (percussion and keys) of what the programme states was originally a three-piece band, led by Oli George Rew.

The dedication by the creatives is clear from the offset, the title alone indicative of a long-lasting love of both genre and era and, while modest in budget, no effort has been spared in creating an effective and evocative playing space for its performers. A canvas-like white spreads from the stage and over the instruments, with dressing room mirror frames either hung or discarded around the space, bulbs missing but those remaining shining brightly on. It’s not theatrical rocket science, but nor is it trying to be.

And so summarises the evening as a whole. Director Harry Blumenau and producer Joseph Hodges aren’t trying to reinvent the wheel, preferring instead to proudly display the old one whether the dust remains or not.

We are in reasonably capable hands with the four performers, (Rebecca LaChance, Thea Butler, Ben Lancaster and Albert Lindsell) each handling their given parts with relative ease, but often for the most part lacking in emotional connection to the songs. Exceptions, however, include LaChance’s rendition of Show Boat’s ‘Bill’ and Butler and Lancaster’s duet ‘Smile’, from Charlie Chaplin’s ‘Modern Times’.

It’s fair to say that the foursome’s strength is in numbers, performing Chris Whittaker’s ambitious choreography with seemingly unchallenged verve, and group numbers ‘I Got Rhythm’ and ‘There’s No Business Like Show Business’ injecting welcome energy into what can, at points, feel slightly stilted.

Unfortunately Give My Regards to Broadway is working outside of its means, with the glitz, glamour and razzle dazzle of the Broadway stage reappropriated for a pub theatre setting. Moments of glorious call and response tap can feel a little thin without a full band to contend with, and the sparse sound may contribute towards a general feeling of a lack of ‘oomph’.

For the most part the production succeeds in its stated mission: ‘to show you what these songs mean to [them].’ It is an evening not only to transport and pay tribute, but to showcase these promising performers in an intimate setting. It promises and it delivers, and that cannot be disputed.

Alex Chard