The Week UK - 29.02.2020

ARTS 31

29 February 2020 THE WEEK

Drama

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Theatre: The Upstart Crow

Gielgud Theatre, London W1 (0844-482 5151). Until 25 April Running time: 2hrs 15mins ★★★★

Itis“hardtoresistthedelirious

silliness”ofBenElton’sThe

UpstartCrow,saidSarah

CromptononWhat’sOnStage.

An“entirelycaptivating”stage

reworkingofhisTVsitcom,

whichimaginesWilliam

Shakespearesufferingfrom

writer’sblockafterpenninga

coupleofduds,it’snotmuch

morethanadaftromppacked

withBlackadder-ishgagsabout

bottomsandcodpieces.Butthe

play“tapsbeautifullyintotwo

strongBritishtraditionsof

writing:theimmaculately

conceivedvaudevilliansight-gag

andthecodhistoricaldrama”.

Elton’sdeepaffectionforallthingsShakespeareanshinesbrightly

throughout.Andthere’sabrilliantcentralperformancefrom

DavidMitchell–both“preposterousandendearing”–that

groundstheplay“inallitswhimsicalabsurdity”.

Following hisslewofWest Endstagehits inthe 1 990 s,Elton

hasneverquitebeenpardonedbythecriticsforwritingthe

“egregious” scriptforQueen’s“jukebox juggernaut”WeWill

RockYou,saidDominicCavendish inTheDailyTelegraph.But

themessagenowissurely:“Welcome back Ben Elton,allis

forgiven.”Upstart Crowwasatreat onthetelly.Now(witha

definitearticle mysteriouslyadded) itworksevenbetter onthe

stage:thelaughteris“communaland continual”.There’sawide

varietyofhilarious supportingperformances,and directorSean

Foleyisontopform,saidMark

LawsoninTheGuardian.

Punchlinesandslapstickare

“meticulouslytimed”.Thisisthe

“mostconsistentlyfunnyand

expertlystagedcomedysince

OneMan,TwoGuvnors.

Well,notquite,saidDavid

JaysinTheSundayTimes.This

“chortlesome”showjustabout

hangstogether“panto-style”.

Butmovingfromatight 30

minutestoa“puttering”1 35

involves“morepaddingthan

adandysprat’sbritches”,and

aconvolutedplotthatdragsin

every“tropeofShakespearean

comedy–cross-dressing,love

pranksandtwin-basedconfusion”.Itdoesn’tquitesustainits

two-hourrunningtime,saidLukeJonesintheDailyMail.Butno

matter.IreckonIwas“somewherebetweenfull-throatedguffaw

andgentletitterfor70%oftheduration”–andIwasn’talone.

Mitchell (left): both “preposterous and endearing”

The week’s other opening

Quality StreetNorthern Broadsides,touringuntil13June

northern-broadsides.co.uk

Laurie Sansom’s firstshow as the artistic director of Northern

Broadsides isa“giddily enjoyable” Halifax-set revival of the J.M.

Barrie comedy that gave the sweets their name.Afine cast finds

real warmth in the midst of all the comic chaos (Telegraph).

Dance: Message In ABottle

The Peacock, London WC2. Until 21March, then touring (zoonation.co.uk) Running time: 1hr 50mins ★★★

Ahip-hop-leddancepieceabout

theglobal refugeecrisis,setto

themusicofStingandThe

Police,might sound likeanodd

idea,saidNeil NormaninThe

Stage. ButMessageInABottle,

acollaborationbetweenKate

Prince’sdancecompany

ZooNationandSting–who has

rerecordedmanyof hisbest-

knownsongsspeciallyforthe

show –isas “successfulas itis

surprising”. Working with the

playwright LolitaChakrabarti

(creditedas“dramaturg”),

Prince’s choreographytells the

story ofafamily of refugees

fleeingcivil war andattempting

aperilous seacrossing.Her work moves freely beyond hiphop,

“harmoniously” embracing“jazz, tap, ballet andevenindigenous

tribaldance”,tocreatea“conceptualstageshowofunusual

depth”, in whichthedance andthesongs are“mutually

nourishing”.King Of Pain,for example, becomesa“cri de cœur

for the dispossessed”;MessageInABottleblossoms from asong

aboutalovelorn lonerintoan“epic plea”forsalvation.

It soundsarisky conceptbut it works, andshouldbea“big

hit”, said Lyndsey WinshipinThe Guardian.The show has an

“infectious,pressing energy thatboilsoverthe edge of thestage”

–and thatitd oessoisinlargepartdue to the“fiercecommitment

andsincerity”of the dancers. Prince’schoreography is packed

with “sharp,tight rhythms, lacedwith pops andpower poses”:

her “blistering” cast at tackthemwith“ahugeamountofheart”,

thetechnical tricksiness ofthe

moves “thrownoffwith casual

grace”.Ifound the storytelling

unconvincing,saidDebra

Craine inTheTimes,butthere’s

no denyingthe“athleticand

uplifting” quality ofthe

dancing.Thewholecompany

issuperb,andnonemoreso

thanthethreeleads(playing

therefugee siblings) Lukas

McFarlane, NatashaGooden

andthe “extraordinaryTommy

Franzen”. Thelatter issuch a

star someone should“buildan

entire show around him”.

The production looksand

soundsgreat,said Louise Levene

in theFT.Sadly, for all itis “slickl ystagedandrapturously

received”, thepieceasawhole“never quiterisestoits subject

matter”. There arefar too many moments when the lyrical

contentstrikingly fails to match thedance.Agang rapesequence,

for example, is settoDon’ tStand So Closeto Me.“Really?”

A“conceptual stage show of unusual depth”

Album of the week

Grimes: Miss Anthropocene4AD £10

TheCanadian artist’s fifth album has been trailed asaconcept

album about the climate crisis, but in practice it’s more about the

“toxicity” of modern celebrity and Grimes’s struggles with fame.

On those terms, it works remarkably well:a“dark, powerful and

compelling” collection of adventurous indie pop (Guardian).