Karey and Wayne Kirkpatrick and John O’Farrell’s Something Rotten! has taken eleven years from opening on Broadway to receiving its UK premiere. In that time, it’s enjoyed a two-year US tour, and had productions in Sweden, Austria, South Korea, Canada, and the Czech Republic. Why has it taken so long to hit Britain? Could it be because it is, in fact, a bit rotten?
No! Not a bit of it. Something Rotten! is one of the funniest, freshest, catchiest, most uplifting new musicals I’ve seen in ages. For a brand new show (new to the UK anyway) it feels surprisingly traditional – but for all the best reasons. Instantly captivating, it reminded me whilst watching the opening sequence of so many of those memorable, ambitious musicals of the 60s and 70s; big set, big cast, big band and big on entertainment. For the first time in years, I left the theatre after seeing a new musical with the songs still in my head – that’s such a rarity nowadays.
It’s 1595 and Shakespeare is ruling London’s theatrical roost. Meanwhile brothers and wannabe playwrights Nick and Nigel Bottom are down on their uppers, disappointing their patron, Lady Croydon, and coming up with ideas that Shakespeare always seems to have got to first. Using what little household savings he and his wife Bea have amassed, Nick employs the services of a soothsayer, Nostradamus – not the Nostradamus, but his nephew Thomas – who looks into the future and predicts that the theatre of tomorrow will be… musicals. Trouble is, no one has heard of them yet, so Nick has a job ahead of him convincing his players and Lady Croydon of this bizarre mix of plot and song. Nostradamus also predicts what will be Shakespeare’s biggest success, so that Nick can nick it first; and he’s so close to getting the title right – but not quite.
On one level, Something Rotten! tells this merry tale of the Bottoms and their struggle to out-Shakespeare Shakespeare. On another, it’s quite the most inventive love letter to theatre in general, and musicals in particular. It makes you wonder who the first person was to think of trying out this new stage format – and to admire and thank them for their innovation. There is a song in the show simply called A Musical, which doffs its cap to so many well-known musical shows, with dozens of hilarious references that make a musical theatre fan guffaw with pleasure.
But Something Rotten! is no mere parody. Nearly all the songs are individual works of genius that either move the story on or enhance our understanding of the characters, and there isn’t a wasted moment in the entire two and a half hours. This is a show that’s determined to give its audience a good time, and it delivers it in spades. The characterisations are hilarious, from the theatre fan Shylock to the secretly theatrical puritan Brother Jeremiah. from the over-the-top Nostradamus to the nauseatingly vain Shakespeare, there’s so much on stage that keeps you laughing and engaged all the way through.
Colin Richmond’s set gives an authentic sense of rickety old London and Rebecca Brower’s costumes are perfectly in keeping with the Elizabeth age, both the rich dandies and the poor downtrodden. Danny Belton’s eight-piece band produce a full, rich, showbizzy accompaniment to the witty songs, and the cast are uniformly excellent, with a hard-working and super-talented troupe and ensemble giving tremendous support throughout.
Gareth Davies gives a surprisingly upbeat portrayal of Shylock, who hopes he might play the happy good-natured Jew in Bottom’s next play. Elliotte Williams-N’Dure plays the delightfully larger-than-life Lady Croydon, hard to please but besotted, like everyone, with Bottom’s big rival. Cory English gives a fantastically energetic and madcap portrayal of Nostradamus, prancing athletically around the stage in the big musical numbers. Cassius Hackforth makes a wonderful contrast with the other characters with his thoughtful characterisation of Nigel, uncertain of his own skills, and hardly daring to fall in love with the excellent Portia, played by Carla Dixon-Hernandez, the poetry-mad daughter of Paul Ryan’s hypocrite Brother Jeremiah, portentously warning against the pleasures of the flesh whilst making endless Freudian slips revealing his true nature.
Marisha Wallace continues to knock every role she takes out of the park, with her lively, endearing and spirited performance as Bea, Nick’s long-suffering but immensely practical and forgiving wife. Her rendition of Right Hand Man is one of the true highlights of the first Act, and she lights up the stage whenever she is on. Equally powerful and impressive is a tour de force by Richard Fleeshman as the big-headed Shakespeare, portraying him as a celebrity superstar, tossing out bon-mots for all his devoted fans to gobble up. Imagine Blackadder’s Lord Flashheart as the bard and you’re part-way there. And of course, one of Manchester’s favourite sons, Jason Manford, appears as Nick Bottom, anchoring the show in his inimitable style, delivering the comedy and music with sure-footed aplomb.
It isn’t a show that makes any serious points about the human condition, but it does celebrate everything that makes us happy. And in these difficult days that’s definitely something worth making a song and dance about. Something Rotten! continues at the Manchester Opera House until 19th July – but surely it must have a life hereafter.
Five Alive, Let Theatre Thrive!