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Bare - The Musical
Presented by: SHooSH! Productions
Venue: Cromwell Road Theatre
Reviewer: Adam Rafferty - Theatre People Editor
Date Reviewed: 7th February, 2008
Written and composed by relative unknowns, the L.A. based duo of Jon
Hartmere and Damon Intrabartolo, bare is a rock/pop musical about
teenage angst, coming out, and the risks of sex and drugs, set
against the backdrop of the Catholic education system.
Peter is a student and altar boy at St. Cecilia’s boarding school,
being eaten up by the secret he keeps from his family, classmates
and priest – he’s gay. He does have one confidante though, his
roommate and boyfriend (behind closed doors) the handsome Jason –
most popular guy in school.
Much of the story’s action centres around the school production of
Romeo and Juliet. Peter manages to convince the reluctant Jason to
audition so they can spend more time together, only to see Jason win
the role of ‘Romeo’ over Matt, his scholastic rival and boyfriend of
‘Juliet’, the attractive Ivy. This creates an unexpected love
triangle when Jason begins to have feelings for Ivy.
As Peter, Nicholas Kong captures well the frustration and torment
experienced by his character, and while Peter is a simpering and
often overly angst-ridden archetype, he’s still an endearing spirit.
Kong gives a superlative vocal performance throughout the entire
production but is truly heart-felt in his rendition of ‘See Me’, the
second act number in which he attempts to come out to his mother
over the phone.
Chris Buchanan delivers the character of Jason with pitch perfect
precision and to a certain degree is the standout performer in this
production. His smoothly suave entry to the show crackles with
sexual energy as he flirts with both the boys and girls, creating
swoons wherever he goes; it is easy to see why he’s so popular.
Vocally Buchanan also triumphs especially in the number ‘Once Upon a
Time’ a song that comes after Jason confesses his sins of the flesh
and asks if God still loves him, only to be condemned by his priest.
Jason’s agony is more than visible in Buchanan’s performance.
The two boys also work beautifully together, blending their vocal
harmonies with delightful precision in the exceptional ‘Best Kept
Secret’ and handling their love scenes with sensitivity.
Jason’s twin sister the amply proportioned Nadia provides comic
relief throughout the play with her acerbic wit – a defence
mechanism used to deflect attention away from her size. When she
misses out on the role of ‘Juliet’ to her roommate Ivy, she explains
away the situation to her supportive brother through the amusing
song ‘Plain Jane Fat Ass’. Dior Deumer as Nadia does a good job of
delivering her cutting dialogue with caustic intensity, but also
shows how she can balance that with pathos through her memorable
number ‘A Quiet Night at Home’.
Via a raunchy tune at the end of the first act, Jason and Ivy end up
sleeping together, leading to thorny consequences for Ivy. Elethea
Sartorelli as Ivy handles these difficult scenes with well-observed
feeling creating a palpable tension. Sartorelli has an excellent
voice and shows off her skills in the mesmerising ‘Portrait of a
Girl’.
Other performances worth noting are those of Natasha Bassett as
Peter’s mother Claire, who delivers a striking rendition of the
impassioned ‘Warning’ a number sung as she comes to the shattering
realisation of her son’s sexuality; Karl McNamara as party boy (and
school drug dealer) Lucas does a brilliant job of the lyrically
difficult ‘Wonderland’ where he convinces the students to attend a
rave supported by his friends ketamine and GHB; and Tyson Legg as
Matt provides the requisite strength of the macho character balanced
with sensitive vocals.
Bec McGuinness as Sister Chantelle shows great moxie in her
interpretation of the somewhat uncaring teacher and provides a fun
diversion when she appears to Peter as the Virgin Mary with her two
angels in the number ‘911! Emergency’. My only issue with this
number was the lack of clarity in McGuinness’ diction, meaning much
the humour of the number is lost on all but those sitting in her
direct line of fire.
Not being able to hear, and therefore understand lyrics was a major
issue with most all of the cast though, largely because of the
overwhelming loudness of the band’s drums, located behind curtains
at the back of the stage. Marcello Lo Ricco’s audio balance between
the band and vocalists leaves much of the story’s exposition up to
the audience to determine as they fill in the missing gaps between
what they can hear and what they can’t. Lo Ricco has it right in
making the band loud – it’s essential in a show with modern music
such as this; you want the sound to hit you full on – but the
purpose is defeated if it means you can’t hear what the cast are
singing. The performers who had least issue with this problem were
those who belted most every line they had to sing. As soon as a cast
member added any subtlety or ‘light and shade’ to their vocal, the
light stuff was lost. I’m sure Musical Director Adrian Szondy and Lo
Ricco will sort this out as the season progresses, and I hope so to
as Szondy’s seven-piece band rock out the score. Szondy should also
be credited for the magnificent work he has done with the ensemble
on their choral singing which sounds truly glorious throughout.
The remaining technical aspects of this show are excellent for the
scale of the production. Benjamin Daly’s lighting design is
appropriate and somewhat innovative. The use of a blacklight in the
rave scene combined with glow sticks and fluorescent costumes leads
to a visually stunning sequence and the backlit print of the show’s
original U.S. design of a shattered leadlight adds omnipresent
elegance to the entire production. The costume team lead by Fiona
Golland has also done an excellent job of providing appropriate and
accurate wardrobe for a show that is deceptive in its costuming
simplicity. Sets are basic, as expected in this venue, and while
somewhat cumbersome for what they achieve, they do add the requisite
cloistered feeling of a Catholic boarding school.
Co-Directors and Producers Nathan Firmin and Brad Fischer have put
this production together skilfully considering the constraints of
small-scale musicals and they have created a show they have all
right to be proud of. The full house on opening night and healthy
looking forward bookings seem to be the congratulations they
deserve. The way they have blocked their cast to use the stage
doesn’t really reflect this patronage though. Some numbers and set
pieces are performed simultaneously on opposite sides of the stage,
and with the proximity of the audience, you are left feeling as
though you’re at a tennis match at times, madly looking left and
right. This would not have been an issue in a larger venue and
certainly perhaps they could have been able to manage this
production somewhere like Chapel off Chapel. The direction of bare’s
more intensely dramatic moments shows considerate subtlety from the
pair and an admirable empathy for the story.
Firmin and Fischer are to be credited for bringing this show to our
shores. For while dramatically it doesn’t break any new ground in
the genre and it’s songs do feel a little ‘samey’ after a while, it
certainly tells its tale with panache and compassion – a welcome
respite from the gormless froth and bubble that seems to be filling
the MidSumma programme of recent years. This show transcends its gay
niche and is easily entertaining enough to connect with audiences
from all walks of life.
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