What a production! What a spectacle! What a performance from Marti Pellow who brings the diabolical Darryl Van Horne to life infront of us!
This musical has class oozing out of it & delighted a full-house at last nights opening show. Based on John Updikes 1984 & jack Nicholsons hit film 3 years later. The WOE combines melodrama with a pacy musical score to create a devilishly good experience.
Wet Wet Wet frontman Pellow shows that he is a gifted musical actor as he is the singer of a rock and roll band - his Van Horne creation owes a lot to Nicholsons creation but he always manages to just avoid going over the top.
Ria Jones, Rebecca Thornhill and Poppy Tierney give superb support as the 3 witches who some how manage to create Van Horne & whose lives end up being taken over by him.
There is also support from Rachel Izen & James Graeme as the upright(or should that be uptight) couple who don't approve of Van Hornes influence on their town & end up meeting a sticky end.
The audience must have been 90% women - I hadn't felt so outnumbered since I had to cover a WI convention in Kessingland about 20 years ago - & for them the attraction was certainly the performance of Mr Pellow.
They will certainly not have gone home disappointed.
What was particularly impressive was that the show didn't appear stale even though the production has been on the road since August & will be touring until the middle of next year.
One slight word of warning though - this is certainly not a family show & some of the material might make you blush if you are not reasonably broadminded.
And while it is a good evenings entertainment, the WOE is not a great musical.
For that you need to come out of the theatre with the songs still in your head.They weren't - & while 'Dirty Laundry' & 'Dance with the Devil' are good show stoppers, thay don't have the foot-tapping quality a truly good show has.
But theres a great story here, great techinical skills on show to build such a good set on a small stage, & great perfomances from a talented cast.
And three out of four is enough to provide an entertaining evening for everyone in the audience.
Review by Paul Geater, The Evening Star 12/11/2008#
A devilishly good show
12 November 2008 | 23:19
Witches of Eastwick, Ipswich Regent
A packed audience at the Ipswich Regent was treated to a wonderful performance
of the The Witches of Eastwick last night.
Over 20 years since the movie of the same name was such a hit for stars such as
Michelle Pfeiffer and Cher, this raunchy story has transferred perfectly into a
West End show.
The story focuses on three friends who live in the New England town of Eastwick
- a small town where non-conformity gets noticed. So the arrival of newcomer
Darryl Van Horne and his particular interest in the three heroines cause quite a
stir.
Marti Pellow was fantastic in the role of Van Horne - made famous by Jack
Nicholson in the original movie. He seemed to relish playing the role with a
sexy confidence that rivalled Jack himself. Let's say not so much Wet Wet Wet as
Hot Hot Hot!
The three lead female roles were played perfectly by Ria Jones, Rebecca
Thornhill and Poppy Tierney, their voices combining harmoniously for songs such
as 'I wish I may' and 'Look at me'.
The comedy flowed, especially through the cleverly symbolic stage sets (look out
for the imaginative door handles!) and through the ensemble pieces such as
'Dirty Laundry' and 'Dance with the Devil'.
Praise should go to the Regent Theatre team for bringing West End standard shows
to the county.
The musical quality and professionalism from Marti Pellow and the cast makes
this a show not to be missed. With four nights still to go - why not swap the
Ipswich Witches for the wonderful Witches of Eastwick!
Chris Ozanne