(seen at the evening performance on 18th January 2022)
“Bonnie and Clyde, were the devil’s children...” so ran the song which inspired this 2011 Broadway musical (and which gets a cameo few bars in the score). It may have lasted just weeks on the Great White Way, but living on in bootleg videos and an official CD was enough to sell out this performance in six minutes and a second hastily-arranged date almost as quickly in one of the largest theatres in London. Like most British musical theatre fans the monkey knew this only from the CD, and grabbed its chance.
It’s a well known story. Besotted Bonnie, daughter of a good family, falls in with car fan Clyde – the classic bad boy corrupts a willing partner. With Clyde’s brother Buck and his wife Blanche joining the Burrows Gang, a long trail of robberies ends in the inevitable.
Ivan Menchell’s book sticks pretty rigidly to the original story and compartmentalises firmly each strand of the tale until bringing them together for a blasting conclusion and even sadder coda. Frank Wildhorn serves up a “Southern” sounding score with some thumping tunes blessed with always intelligent Don Black lyrics.
Strong numbers include “Picture Show” as a little girl dreams and later reflects on the path taken, an ensemble number “Made In America” and a wrenching “Dyin’ Ain’t So Bad.” Add an hilarious egotistical bank-robbery set-piece and the bouncing “God’s Arms Are Always Open” (with an acid intercut) and the show is always involving.
For this special event, original Broadway “Clyde” in the shape of Jeremy Jordan received a rapturous reception. On the vast Drury Lane stage his experience shone, filling it and enveloping every corner to the top balcony.
Generating real chemistry with leading lady and object of his desires, Frances McCann (Bonnie) both made it look like they had known each other years. McCann herself, a last-minute substitute for an unvaccinated actor, is every inch the leading lady with obsession, insanity and sensuality jostling for pole position.
Brother Buck (George Maguire) and his wife Blanche (Natalie McQueen) seem to have things sorted, Maguire convincing us for a while of his repentance, McQueen just enjoying herself a worryingly amount sliding into crime as the thrill of the hair salon waned.
Matriach of the Burrows clan Cummie (Gillian Bevan) dominated every scene she was in, but her character proved too weak to avert a tragic ending. The show’s other moral fibre, Preacher (Trevor Dion Nicholas) was also on fine fire-and-brimstone form, giving a more energetic performance than the cast CD suggests of the original.
A hard working group of West End stars including Debbie Kurup (Governor Miriam Ferguson / Eleanor), Eloise Davies (Trish), Russell Wilcox (determined Captain Frank Hamer), plus youngsters Albert Atack (Young Clyde) and Bea Ward (Young Bonnie) filled the stage on Philip Witcomb’s ingenious stepped set in front of a bullet-peppered “Stars and Stripes.”
Nick Winston and Katy Richardson set a smart pace with direction / choreography and musical direction respectively. The show needs the same drive and energy as the title couple, and they found it. With limited resources, Zoe Spurr worked magic with the lighting of the closing moments, a careful use of follow-spot adding to the drama – Tom Marshall’s library of gunfire adding a final touch.
The surprise end of the show had the trio of Wildhorn, Black and Menchell on stage with the producers announcing proudly a London production of the show reaching the Arts Theatre in April 2022. www.bonnieandclydemusical.com. This concert has also been filmed live for stream release - the website will have the details.
With a satisfying mixture of high romance, low crime and scarcely believable but true melodrama, the monkey hopes this cult show finds a broader audience in its second life. Judging by the audience this evening, it has every chance of doing so in an intimate venue where every emotion can be concentrated.
4 stars.
Photo credit: Darren Bell. Used by kind permission.