![](https://www.sardinesmagazine.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/3538_1554215090.jpg)
Show: Little Miss Sunshine
Society: London (professional shows)
Venue: Arcola Theatre, 24 Ashwin Street, Dalston, London
Credits: Presented by Selladoor Productions and Arcola Theatre. Based on the film written by Michael Arndt
Type: Sardines
Author: Chris Abbott
Performance Date: 01/04/2019
Little Miss Sunshine
Chris Abbott | 02 Apr 2019 09:50am
L-R: Front – Lily Mae Denman, Sev Koeshgerian, Laura Pitt-Pulford, Back – Paul Keating, Gary Wilmot, Gabriel Vick. Photo: Manuel Harlan
It’s good to see another show by James Lapine and William Finn reach London. Previous collaborations like Falsettos and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee are not well known here but are much remembered by those who saw them. Little Miss Sunshine shares with those musicals the involvement of children, something of a trademark of this team but rather more problematical in this case.
As many will know from the film version, Little Miss Sunshine tells the story of a family supporting young daughter Olive who has unexpectedly reached the finals of a beauty pageant for children. Since the only way to get there is in the beat-up family minibus, this is mainly the story of a journey – with the similarity to Priscilla wittily alluded to on the poster. As we get to know this fairly dysfunctional family, we also witness a tragedy as well as something of a triumph.
Lead performers Laura Pitt-Pulford and Gabriel Vick play the warring parents, and pull off the difficult trick of making two tiresome people both interesting and at times engaging. Musically they are also at the heart of the production and cope well with the rather talky lyrics and tricky melodies of this score, beautifully played by Arlene McNaught’s band including Natalie Hancock on cello.
Suicidal, gay, Proust-loving Uncle Frank is made believable by a finely-judged performance from Paul Keating, and Sev Keoshgerian makes much of teenaged son Dwayne and his solo although he does not really look young enough. Family reprobate Grandpa, evicted from his senior home and with a history of drug-taking and more, is played with great subtlety and understanding by Gary Wilmot, who is also totally at home with the musical demands of the part.
The role of Grandpa is one of the two key problems with this piece. In the first half he is treated quite realistically for all his faults, and we recognise the bond that exists between him and Olive. After the interval the tone lurches into broad farce, with a body manhandled into a trunk and little in the way of realism, leading to a very disjointed feel.
On press night the title role was played by Sophie Hartley-Booth, pitch perfect as only talented and fearless young performers can be. She revelled in the opportunity to own the stage and it was a joy to see the delight on her face at the curtain. She times the lines well too, although it was disappointing that one of them was the cheap laugh to be got from a cute eight year old girl tricked into saying “We’re fucked.” The role is shared with Lily Mae Denman and Evie Gibson, both equally impressive I am sure.
Another nine young girls share the parts of the three Mean Girls who poke fun at Olive, and do so entertainingly and believably. Also in support are three talented cast members playing more than one role each: among these roles, Matthew McDonald makes his mark as a sympathetic techie, Ian Carlyle is an excruciating pageant host, and Imelda Warren-Green takes no hostages when seizing the contrasting roles of a hospital administrator and a beauty queen.
No weak points in the cast then, and the set (David Woodhead) provides a believable bus as well as space for Anthony Whiteman’s choreography. As the pageant nears, however, the second problem with this show becomes clear: how to present the pageant itself, in which Olive dances in a wedding dress and then strips to a catsuit. It is credit to director Mehmet Ergen that this is not as sleazy and disturbing as it might have been; it is mostly played for laughs and only a few of the dance moves hint at how much Grandpa has got it wrong, but it’s still an uncomfortable scene to watch.
- : admin
- : 01/04/2019