Entertainingly loveable near-psychopath – Josh Wilmott plays Bud Frump in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying at the Ye Olde Rose and Crown Theatre
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying continues until at Ye Olde Rose and Crown Theatre, London until 24 May.
Modern self-help books tend to be dreary reading, and certainly not worthy musical theatre source material. In 1952, however, Shepherd Mead released How to Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, a humorous look at US office culture gleaned from his own 30-year ascension from mailroom clerk to company vice-president.
A decade later, Frank Loesser and Abe Burrows (using some material from an earlier dramatic interpretation by Willie Gilbert and Jack Weinstock) created a satirical tale of contemporary office culture in which window-washer J Pierpont Finch takes the advice of the original book to heart, and ascends through a company’s ranks in a matter of days with a minimum of work. The result is a sharp and funny take on office life, steeped in the politically incorrect office culture of the mid 20th century. This is Mad Men with jazz hands.
A bit of that Mad Men sensibility rubs off on this latest fringe revival, as some of the sexual politics between businessmen and secretaries are expressed through some visual gags that are rather more risqué than would have featured in the original. But while those touches may jar slightly with the more innocent tone of the rest of the musical’s take on the sexes – from the executives urging themselves to behave in ‘A Secretary is Not a Toy’, to Finch’s love interest Rosemary fantasising about happily becoming a neglected wife to a workaholic husband in ‘Happy to Keep His Dinner Warm’ – they do not stop this production, directed by Dawn Kalani Cowle, becoming one of the most entertaining of fringe revivals in a long time.
While Adam Pettigrew captures Finch’s sweet-natured lovability, and Alyssa Nicol excels as Rosemary, this is the genre of musical where the kooky sidekicks are always going to be the more interesting roles. In this regard, Geraldine Allen as Rosemary’s best friend Smitty and Amy Burke as the brainless-but-charming bimbo Hedy La Rue take what little dimensions their characters have been given and make them shine. But it is Josh Wilmott as Finch’s business rival Bud Frump that elevates both that character and the whole production onto new levels. Written as an obsequious rat who uses his status as the boss’ nephew to try and progress within the company, here he is much more: a sly, dangerous, unpredictable, entertainingly loveable near-psychopath.
As a collection of song and dance numbers this is one show that’s hard to beat. However, it does drag in places, especially in Act I – mostly as a result of some spoken scenes with company boss J B Biggley that are in desperate need of tightening up. But throughout the rest of its three-hour long running time, there are great musical numbers containing some ambitious and entertaining choreography (staged by Brendan Matthew) that more than make up for any such slight deficiencies.
Scott Matthewman
www.yeolderoseandcrowntheatrepub.co.uk
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