(seen at the afternoon preview performance on 8th June 2023)
Most books about writing musicals suggest that when adapting a movie for the stage, the writers go through the script and “dot” the places where a song can say more about the actor’s emotion than dialogue ever can.
The problem with “Mrs Doubtfire” is that the script (plus Robin Willams’s improvisations) is brilliant to begin with. The hilarious zingers belie the deep confusion, hurt and anger beneath each one and say as much as a showtune ever could.
Thus the Kirkpatricks and O’Farrell music, lyric and book are at a disadvantage from the start, and the truth is that the entire score does too often seem surplus to requirements.
There really isn’t a strong musical moment in the show, and the longer dance routines slow the action rather than assist it, particularly in the lengthy second act restaurant scene.
Nothing wrong with the delivery of “He Lied To Me” by Lisa Mathieson, but it disrupted unnecessarily the flow of what should have been one crazy climactic sequence.
And that is the fundamental difficulty underlined. Left to their comedic gifts and the spoken scenes, this should be a smash hit night out.
Gabriel Vic is unmissable as Daniel Hillard, dreamer and soon to be divorced in every way from his wife and beloved children. Hillard’s range of voices dazzles, his control keeps what could slip into irritating childishness quite real, and his love for his family is genuine and moving.
He can also throw an American Football properly – a rare skill on stage. Shame it was fumbled for an incomplete pass by the stagehand in the wings.
Wife Miranda has Laura Tebbutt bitter but without rancour, making the resolution credible as she does not become entirely detached emotionally from her former husband despite the presence of new man Stuart (Samuel Edwards nicely navigating the tricky waters). While she emotes her own big number beautifully, the song itself is just one more throwaway disappointingly failing to land over the footlights.
Eldest daughter Lydia (Carla Dixon-Hernandez) plays a much younger person with style. Her duet “Just Pretend” is well judged, and with her two siblings Christopher (Max Bispham) and Natalie (Ava Posniak) delivers “What The Hell” as a believable family moment.
Kelly Abbowu is a terrific court official Wanda Sellner, her scenes in Daniel’s flat with his brother Frank and partner Andre (Cameron Blakely and Marcus Collins in a great double-act) are uproarious, and give us a first glimpse too of how the “Mrs Doubtfire” transformation works.
In smaller roles Micha Richardson is a fun Janet Lundy, while Ian Talbot steals the show as Mr Jolly, with his theme song probably the best ensemble number.
Director Jerry Zaks keeps the pace smart once the storyline allows it. As in the film, the first 20 minutes of back story and setup are slow, bursting into life only as the title character is unveiled.
It is during this early lull that the one stunningly crass misjudgement of mood and staging occurs. An under-dressed stripper arrives at a children’s birthday party in a huge misjudgement of tone which the monkey hopes was cut in preview. It would certainly mollify mutterings of “child pornography” from members of the audience around it. It had also spoken to two young women earlier that week who had left at the interval of an earlier performance because of it.
Designer David Korins keeps the staging simple with just two large sets and plenty of space for Lorin Latarro’s rather limited choreography to take place.
Philip S. Rosenberg manages to create an interesting lighting moment during “Clean it Up / What The Hell” in the second act. Sadly Brian Ronan’s sound design is less effective, the front centre stalls finding the cast inaudible over the orchestra on several occasions.
The comedy flows around the music rather than through it, and the musical theatre aspect never really justifies itself. When left to its original material the show is frequently hilarious and zips along with meaningful emotions delivered by a top cast.
A paradox that the show could lose every song and be the better for it, yet as it stands it is an enjoyable enough evening and a testimony to family unity, in whatever form it takes... even that of an unlikely Scottish nanny called Euphegenia Doubtfire.
