Spamalot Review

April 28, 2015 by Ray Morgan

Spamalot Review

Ol' Leigh-on-Sea.com likes to challenge me. Last month, I was asked to review The Producers and my initial thought was AGHHH MUSICALS AGGGHGHHHHNNGNGN. But I really, really enjoyed it.

So when I was asked to attend the opening night of Spamalot, my face went a little bit like those kids you see on YouTube who are given a lemon to suck on by cruel/hilarious parents with iPhones. I'm going to put this out there: I am not a fan of Monty Python. Feel free to judge me, defriend me, I said it. I just don't get it. We watched Monty Python films at college, and as the class rolled around laughing, I felt really thick; I didn't get it. I just didn't find it funny.

ANYWAY. College was a long time ago, despite feeling like it was only yesterday. It's 2015, Rachel. SEEVIC waved goodbye to you in 2003.

Spamalot is a very silly show, but don't be fooled: it's also steeped in cleverness. So clever, that some of the cultural references were so up to date that my friend and I wondered if it is fluid, dropping in a Jeremy Clarkson joke and Lady Gaga dance moves in a very zeitgeisty way.

The two stars heading up the cast were Joe Pasquale and Todd Carty (TUCKER!), the latter very amusing as put-upon simpleton Patsy. Pasquale was very good at ad-libbing and engaging with the audience. At one point, when we laughed at him, he quipped "This might be a night out for you, but it's a career for me!"

The energy of the cast was superb, and after the first three songs I kind of eased into the fact it was a musical (I'm working through my problems) and went with it. It's silly, funny, and the singing really was incredible. Richard Meek, who played Dennis Galahad, was one of my favourites, an erudite political Russell Brand type before being transformed into a flicky-haired dish for the rest of the show. He played his role with flair and excellent comic timing.

Similarly to The Producers, I took issue with the 'dancing girls' who act as sort-of narrators, but prance around in teeny leotards. Surely we don't have to STILL do that? Thank goodness, then, for Sarah Earnshaw, whose comical performance, for me, stole the show (and she wasn't scantily clad). Earnshaw has one of those classic musical voices - Elaine Page called, she wants her sass back - but what I loved was that the songs mocked the musical genre. This I could get behind.

I actually found myself laughing properly, heartily out loud at Earnshaw and Meek's number The Song That Goes Like This because it frankly rips the mickey out of cheesy love songs in musicals. Very clever indeed.

Given my pre-existing issues with Monty Python, I have no prior knowledge to be wise to any of the in-jokes, but it's a great credit to the writing that I didn't once feel like I was missing out on anything. The only low point for me was Always Look On The Bright Side of Life, but that's nobody's fault but my own (it's probably the only song I dislike more than Yellow Submarine.)

I have to say that Spamalot gave me a great night out. I loved the jokes, I loved the silliness, I loved the performances. Someone said to me I may be becoming a musical convert. I hate to admit it, but I think I possibly am.

Spamalot is running at the Cliffs Pavilion until Saturday 2 May, and it comes highly recommended.

SIDE NOTE: Someone dropped an apple after the interval that rolled all the way down the wooden aisle and I genuinely thought it was a) part of the show and b) a bowling ball, it was that loud. I'm not sure why I had to share that with you all, but it amused me greatly. Who takes an apple to the theatre! There's a bar out there guys! 

For tickets to this show please visit https://southendtheatres.org.uk/Online/default.asp?doWork::WScontent::loadArticle=Load&BOparam::WScontent::loadArticle::article_id=45C230F2-B1CE-4B46-82C9-0434917FBBBF