Ever since I was in a concert which featured a musical number from this show, I have wanted to see The Producers. More than that; I want to play Max Bialystock, a role only equaled by Daryl Van Horne as far as my theatre dreams go.
I’d not seen anything from St Augustine’s MTC before, but I had heard good of their reputation. Therefore, I had high hopes for my first viewing of this Mel Brooks masterpiece. And I was not disappointed.
The Producers tells of Max Bialystock, Broadway’s worst producer, and his attempt, aided by accountant, Leo Bloom, to contrive a massive flop and the worst show in history, thus pocketing the invested money once it folds after opening night. Of course, things do not go as planned.
The Producers is fast, funny and full of excellent numbers. Add to that fine performances and good production, then you have a hit. Ironic that a show about how to make a flop is such a smash, notably reflected in a record-breaking 12 Tony Awards after opening on Broadway in 2001.
As I have said, such a good show, but a script can only do so much. You need a team capable of fulfilling the potential, and in St Augustine’s they had that and more. I see a lot of theatre, both amateur and professional, and I would not only rate The Producers as being one of the best of the unpaid kind, but in my top five of all time, including those on tour and West End.
Leading the line was John Morrison as Max. Quite one of the best character actors I have seen and having witnessed previous performances in other shows, the main draw for me going in the first place. From the King of Broadway to the brilliant Betrayed, the audience saw a performance up there with the best.
But then there was also Richard Perks as Leo Bloom, equally as good and both he and Morrison were magnificent in their collaborations on We Can Do It and Where Did We Go Right? And it does not end there. There is such a wealth of good character opportunities in this show and we had no weak links on this occasion: Nicki Willets (Ulla), Nick Salter (Franz Liebkind), Mike Bentley (Roger DeBris) and Lochlann Hannon (Carmen Ghia) were outstanding.
Other top tunes for me included: I Wanna Be a Producer, Der Gutten Tag Hop-Clop, Keep it Gay, When You’ve Got it, Flaunt It, It’s Bad Luck to Say Good Luck on Op’ning Night and Prisoners of Love. Best of all for me was Along Came Bialy. However, my favourite moment in the entire show is when Ulla paints the entire office white. Loved it.
“She’s even painted the numbers on the combination!”
I can’t praise highly enough, also, the production team: Veronica Walsh (Producer/Director), Stephen Powell (Musical Director), Sharyn Hastings (Choreography) and Tony Walsh (Stage Manager) can be so proud of their efforts.
A marvelous company, full of good acting, song and fabulous dance. What a show!
Picture blatantly stolen from St Augustine’s Facebook page.
Cheers.
Antony N Britt - Author 