BUSOM – Just For Laughs
Escape, Thursday 2nd May 2013, 7:30pm
Sorry for the lateness of this review. May has been crazy!
And so as May arrived the final BUSOM production of the year arrived into Escape, and this one at least managed to avoid any inclement weather that had hit their previous two pieces. Their final show of the year was entitled ‘Just For Laughs’ and was a collection of songs from a variety of musicals, movies and stand up comedians, delivered by the fine men and women of the Bradford University Society of Operettas and Musicals in Escape.
Opener ‘Comedy Tonight’ from the Steven Sondheim musical ‘A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum’ was an appropriate opening to the production held together with some interesting monologues from musical director Jon Carter. The opening was mostly strong though a few performers needed a bit of bedding in.
‘I’ve Got A Little List’ followed and saw Danny Sweeney adapt and perform the Gilbert and Sullivan classic. With West Yorkshire-specific lines scattered throughout the piece, such as ‘Arseholes of Great Horton Road’, the new adaptation was relevant, witty and well done, with some excellent piano work from Colin Fine, once more stepping into the breach as the lord of the black and white keys.
Disney parody ‘After Ever After’ was up next delivered by four of the stronger female performers of the BUSOM collective. The acapella elements were well done but sometimes they struggled against the music. Anna Garlick once more earned her stripes as a funny character actor and the group brought the funny lyrics, told through four Disney princesses to life. There was great acting across the board, though sometimes they struggled keeping up with the lyrics but with Emily also adapting the music for the piece, it was a good achievement.
Cult classic ‘Springtime for Hitler’ was up next and it was an enjoyable rendition by Nick Smith, Danny Sweeney and Chorus but, if I’m being honest, it’s not a particularly good song by Mel Brooks. Chastise me if you wish! The ensemble elements worked well with Nick Smith proving to be the best of the male solos, tackling the high notes well.
Kudos should definitely go to Anna Garlick for tackling a song by one of my all time favourite comedians, and my favourite of his songs. Tim Vine’s ‘Alarm Bells’ is a great song and Garlick captured the character and humour from the short piece, though the lack of a musical accompaniment reduced the tightness of the piece and the tempo changes of the song proved tricky at times.
The Ryanair-spoofing ‘Cheap Flights’ from ‘Fascinating Aida’ was a highlight of the show, with Lyndsey Niven pulling off a spot-on Irish accent, though once more the lack of musical accompaniment reduced the impact of the song. There were, though, strong solos from Niven, Emily Bennett and Catrina Lodge and they worked in partnership to really deliver the song, plus some Irish dancing mixed in went down well.
The first act neared its conclusion with a witty performance of ‘I Got It From Agnes’ by Dave Jennings, though there were a few lyrical stumbles, and ‘Beelz’ saw a fun adlib from pianist Colin Fine alongside a few Bradford-based adaptations, a funny Satanical performance from Lyndsey Niven and a little bit of guitar from Alistair Proudman to add something else into the mix, though I felt there could have been a bit more shredding in the performance.
The first half was rounded off with the Monty Python classic ‘Always Look on the Bright Side of Life’ with an on the mark opening from Proudman. The song lacked a little energy in parts but overall a fun ending to act one, and the added whistling hit the mark.
After a short interval break in a production that didn’t feel as long as others they’ve done, the chorus kicked off with ‘Omigod You Guys’ from ‘Legally Blonde: The Musical’. The effect of multiple vocalists worked well with a nice capture of the atmosphere, but there was some difficulty with the high notes.
Mick Waterhouse took centre stage for the second track (Flanders and Swann’s ‘The Gasman Cometh’), a witty song, nicely performed, accented and acted, as Waterhouse embodied the character well.
‘Make ‘Em Laugh’ from ‘Singin’ In The Rain’ allowed Nick Smith to headline a song and he took good advantage of the opportunity with an enjoyable performance, book-ended as it was by ‘Taylor the Latte Boy’ parts one and two, with Emily Bennett and Ben Bell taking on the roles of stalker and stalkee. The concept of song and rebuttal was well set-up by BUSOM with a great use of hipster specs but the song, outside of the concept, wasn’t more than mildly funny and the lack of a distinct riff in the song made the two parts difficult to latch onto, but it was a nicely done distraction.
Back to what we know and ‘Every Sperm Is Sacred’, the second Monty Python offering of the evening, allowed Nick Smith to once more shine, this time as a Yorkshireman, and only some timing issues – resolved by the second verse – impacting on the performance.
One of my favourite musical songs of all time – ‘Brush Up Your Shakespeare’ – appeared as the penultimate tune and saw the double act of Joel Blakemore and Jon Carter return. They performed the song well as a duo of characters, perhaps lacking a little in energy in delivering the lines with not as much gusto as I’ve heard in other renditions of it, but the song certainly brought a smile to everyone’s faces, especially mine.
The show concluded with the company’s version of ‘Rock and Roll Nerd’ by Tim Minchin, a very accurate and enjoyable version of the song, though it’s not one of the best songs Minchin has done, if I’m being honest. But the company tackled it well and it rounded off an enjoyable show well.
‘Just For Laughs’ was another fun show from BUSOM. Shorter than their usual collections but full of a good cross section of songs, there was, to roll out a cliché, something for everyone. At times it lacked the energy and refinement I’ve seen in previous productions and some of the song choices weren’t my personal cup of tea, but it was another production worth seeing.
