Son Of A Preacher Man

What an extraordinary piece of work. There is no doubt that musically this collection of classic Dusty Springfield is exceptional, the quality of the arrangements, the instrumental parts and vocals simply delightful with some brilliant solos and stunning harmonies throughout. I liked the play too, it’s a clever device and into it, unlike so many “juke box” shows, the songs are seamlessly woven rather than clumsily tacked on. The gay storyline is beautifully constructed and handled and all three of the lead characters are fairly believable, if one is prepared to suspend belief over the age of the oldest couple who would by my reckoning be at least 70 – dramatic license I guess. Craig Revel Horwood once again proves to be a masterful director and choreographer beautifully steering the actor/musicians through the story and giving us some very memorable dance sections, in particular the ballet of the two young boys. All this good if not great – but here lies my disappointment – a truly dismal set, a set that looked like the worst of am-dram, a cartoon panto of a setting that simply debases the rest of the show. When the cast work in front of the simple brick cloth it looks so much better than against the gaudy and clumsy physical set and that saddened me. What I did love though was the fact that the music was integral to the plot, the audience understood this and rather than jumping up and dancing and singing during the story, they waited until the reprises at the curtain call.

Theatre Royal Brighton

17 April

Andrew Kay

Rating: