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Devil of a job
for pop maestro Marti
Wednesday, April 15, 2009, 06:36
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IT'S a tough job ... but someone has to do it.
Spare a thought for poor Marti Pellow, forced to spend his nights being fawned
over and fondled by three gorgeous, sexually charged women -- the lucky devil.
And the devil he is in the shape of Darryl Van Horn, the answer to the prayers
of three frustrated women in the strait-laced New England town of Eastwick.
For a star whose trade is pop music, Marti Pellow is astonishingly good. His
performance is full of passion and commitment as he becomes the devil incarnate,
arrogant, outrageous and downright evil.
As a singer, he possesses the strength and range needed for musical theatre. All
he presently lacks is a fully developed actor's voice capable of hitting the
back row with well-defined clarity. Nevertheless his genuine star quality
bridges a gap which, given time, will surely narrow.
The more he works alongside established performers like Ria Jones, Rebecca
Thornhill and Poppy Tierney, who play the three ladies of the title, the sooner
he will master the craft.
All three of them were simply stunning. In fact, this colourful and cleverly
scripted show is well cast right down the list. Rachel Izen gives a gutsy
performance as the town's moral guardian Felicia Gabriel, and Joanna Kirkland
and Chris Thatcher make an appealing pair of naive young lovers who eventually
fall under Van Horne's dark spell.
The only thing this raunchy, x-rated show lacks is a stand-out song, the kind
that remains in your head long after the final curtain.
There are a couple of bright production numbers, Dirty Laundry and the exciting
Dance With The Devil, but nothing that someone like Marti Pellow could carry to
the top of the charts.
ANDY SMART