The strut, the songs and THAT suit - the seventies are back
in Oxford as Saturday Night Fever hits town. Based on the classic John
Travolta movie (no more mentions of that) this high octane musical sees
New Yorker Tony Manero pursuing his dreams of becoming a dance champion
in the world of Brooklyn Discos.
As Manero, Stephane Anelli is a great stage presence, snake-hipped
and brooding, with a light but expressive singing voice which is used
to best effect on the ballad 'Immortality'. Although Anelli dominates
from the start, the supporting cast are all excellent, especially Darren
Carnell as the tragic Bobby C, and Jane Horn as Annette. However, even
these performances are eclipsed by the songs themselves - to hear the
Bee Gees' numbers sung in a dramatic context brought new life to them.
'Tragedy', sung by Carnell, is a revelation as a huge tear-jerking power
ballad, laying to rest the cheesy version by Steps, and 'If I Cant
Have You', sung by Horn, comes as a plea from the heart. Such is the quality
of the songs it is hard not to believe they werent written specifically
for the stage. But of course, Night Fever has dancing as well and here
the whole cast really come into their own. Anelli, and Zoe Smith as his
dance partner the social climbing Stephanie, both dance fantastically,
but the ensemble dance numbers are breathtaking. In some cases saying
the best bit of the evening was the end may seem rude but with Saturday
Night Fever this is the case: the finale is wonderful, all the cast onstage
reprising most of the songs, and either Stephane Anelli is the best actor
in the world or he was having as much fun as the audience. This was one
evening which certainly had the Apollo audience dancing in the aisles.
David Wootten, 10.06.03
|