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A CurtainUp 
London Review
London ReviewPippin
by Sebastian King
| I believe if I refuse to grow old, I can stay young ‘til I die. /i> — Berthe
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Hasrry Hepple as Pippin and Carly Bawden as Catherine
(Photo: Tristram Kenton) |
Following its short-lived West End run at Her Majesty’s Theatre in 1973, Pippin is rarely performed in this country, despite having had several major revivals across the Atlantic. However, given Babani’s reputation for re-exploring Broadway classics as imaginative chamber pieces, perhaps his choice of Pippinis unsurprising; although this production is anything but.
Loosely based on a true story, Pippin tells the story of its eponymous hero – the teenage son of Charlemagne, King of the Franks – as he searches for purpose in his life. Along the way, he dabbles in war, sex, art and religion in his quest to do something extraordinary. Hirson’s book is purposefully abstruse, and with its disposal of the fourth wall, and frequent references to class divide and revolution, feels at times like the sort of theatre Brecht would have been making, had he been alive in the 1970s. The songs pastiche a variety of musical styles, and have echoes of Schwartz’s more recent and most successful show Wicked, although there are far fewer memorable tunes here.
Although the original production saw a troupe of travelling players telling Pippin’s story as a play-within-a-play, Mitch Sebastian’s radical re-working roots it firmly within the world of a computer game. The audience enters the auditorium through a teenager’s bedroom (complete with teenager – more of him later), plastered in recent movie and computer game posters. Timothy Bird’s sparse industrial set utilises the Menier space brilliantly, and is constantly transformed and reinvented throughout the performance with stunning projections, taking us on a journey further and further inside this weird and wonderful virtual world.
We are welcomed by the Leading Player (Matt Rawle), a sinister Master of Ceremonies who guides us through the various ‘levels’. The teenager from the bedroom enters, and is told that he will be playing this game as ‘Pippin’. In the title role, Harry Hepple is an amiable Everyman figure, with a great voice. His opening number, in which he yearns for his ‘Corner of the Sky’ is the best number in the show and loses none of its magic over the course of its various reprises.
Hepple and Rawle are ably supported by an attractive and talented ensemble, thrusting and gyrating their way through Bob Fosse’s original choreography, recreated here by Chet Walker, and fused with more contemporary movement by Sebastian. Among the top-notch supporting cast, Frances Ruffelle as Pippin’s evil stepmother Fastrada and Louise Gold as his bohemian grandmother Berthe are woefully underused, and Carly Bawden as his love interest and saviour Catherine is a welcome addition to Act 2, with her haunting torch song ‘I Guess I’ll Miss The Man’ one of the musical highlights of the evening.
This is a bold reinterpretation of a bizarre piece, and will no doubt provoke strong reactions from its audiences. However, whether you love it or hate it, there is no doubt that you – like Pippin himself – will have experienced something truly extraordinary.
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| Pippin
Book by Roger O. Hirson Music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz Directed and choreographed by Mitch Sebastian Starring: Harry Hepple, Matt Rawle, Ian Kelsey, Frances Ruffelle, Louise Gold, Carly Bawden With: David Page, Stuart Neal, Ben Bunce, Bob Harms, Holly James, Anabel Kutay, David McMullan, Kate Tydman Original Bob Fosse choreography recreated by Chet Walker Production Design: Timothy Bird for Knifedge Costume Design: Jean-Marc Puissant Musical Director: Tom Kelly Lighting: Ken Billington Sound Design: Gareth Owen Orchestration and Musical Supervision: Simon Lee Running time: 2 hours 20 minutes including one interval Box Office: 020 7907 7060 Booking to 25th February 2012 Reviewed by Sebastian King based on 7th December 2011 performance at Menier Chocolate Factory, 51-53 Southwark Street, London SE1 1RU (Tube: London Bridge) |
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Musical Numbers
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Act One
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Act Two
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