Children rarely do what they’re told, the little scamps. In fact, they often do quite the opposite of what they’re told – especially when it comes to love.
This is the central premise of Schmidt and Jones’ The Fantasticks, which premiered off-Broadway
in 1960. Taking huge inspiration from
Shakespeare (Romeo And Juliet and A Midsummer Night’s Dream in
particular), this commedia dell’arte fairytale tells the story of two neighbourly
fathers who trick their children into falling in love by building a wall
between their houses and feigning antagonism.
The Fantasticks is
the longest running show in history, receiving huge success from its fourty-two
year run off-Broadway. However, despite
(or perhaps due to) the unabashed Shakespeare references, English audiences
have never quite taken to the piece. Director
Neil Robinson poses that this is perhaps due to the reliance on stock
characters: as with the ‘Pyramus and Thisby’ episode in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The
Fantasticks takes the form of an allegorical play-within-a-play. This lends the piece an air of overt
theatricality that creates its own wall in the face of naturalism or in humanising
these characters.
The first character we witness, however, is The Mute (Greg
Page), here used as the stage manager of the play-within-a-play. It’s one of many clever conceits devised by
Robinson to give a greater sense of purpose to the piece, and provides Page
with plenty of (sometimes distracting) opportunities for comedy.
The musical itself, however, is patchy and inconsistent. Particularly in the second act there is a
lack of clear narrative direction; instead this is an abstract piece that
jarringly leaps from one extreme to another, from scenes of blossoming youthful
love, to the fathers’ plotting (that comically, if insensitively, revolves
around rape) and to the silliness of the clown-like duo Henry Albertson (Seamus
Newham) and Mortimer (James Weal). Robinson's minimalist staging does allow the mind to wander and imagine each scenario, whilst the
score provides suitable musical accompaniment to the varying characters: from
fantastical harp-based ballads, to traditional showtunes, jazz numbers, and
more Sondheim-esque dramatic pieces. As
a whole, though, The Fantasticks doesn’t
quite feel cohesive.
That said, the cast grapple with the material and varying
musical styles to offer some excellent performances. Emma Harrold and James Irving truly shine as
the young lovers – Luisa the brattish young girl with a rebellious streak that
is easily corrupted, Matt the hopeless romantic who declares his love through
poetry. Gavin James’ El Gallo
mysteriously narrates throughout, whilst Brian McCann and Tim Walton sure can
belt out a tune as fathers Bellomy and Hucklebee. The four-piece band play securely and, whilst
the odd sound balance issue does surface, this is somewhat to be expected in
such a fringe venue.
The Fantasticks is
certainly an odd little show that is likely to divide audiences. At the least, however, Rose Bridge Theatre
Company have brought a unique tale to London’s fringe theatre scene.
3/5
Watch: The Fantasticks is performed from the 23rd-27th July at the Jermyn Street Theatre.