Top Hat: The Musical

Philip Attmore and cast in Top Hat:The Musical. Image uncredited

****

It's a brave endeavour staging an adaptation of the classical movie Top Hat. One might say foolhardy. Irving Berlin 1935 classic movie featuring the inimitable Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, and a sublime supporting cast, effortlessly graceful and faultlessly charming. It's boy meets girl with a twist of mistaken identity leaving you hoping love conquers all. This being the Golden Age of Hollywood you've a pretty good idea how it will all play out. But in Chichester Festival Theatre Production's Top Hat:The Musical it gets there with inimitable style. Not enough to match the flawless original, but enough to ensure that if you enjoyed the movie, you'll be wild about Top Hat: The Musical.

Amara Okereke and Emma Williams in Top Hat:The Musical. Image uncredited.

A stories go, its tale of a cocky celebrity and the woman he pursues, his troubled producer and world weary wife, an egotistical fashion designer and spy quoting manservant doles out lashing of humour and charm. Martin White and Howard Jack's adaptation making lots of smart choices. Leaning not just into the movie, but into Vaudevillian staging. Song and dance acts, comic scenes and joke telling routines combine to create a tapestry of interlinked scenes. Director Kathleen Marshall marshalling her troops superbly, even if, choreographically, dance is less ambitious and graceful than its source material. Suffering an untidiness in sychronisity inevitable when it comes to touring productions. Yet Top Hat: The Musical remains a visual spectacle. Top drawer design, led by Peter McKintosh's art deco inspired set, looking opulently scrumptious. Its revolving, semicircle arc transforming hotel rooms into bars and lobbies, or outdoor parks. Gorgeously illuminated by Tim Mitchell. Yvonne Mills and McKintosh's costumes sumptuous and evocative, right down to a Zeigfield Follies routine. Against which comedy, charm and romance play out in an utterly enjoyable evening, enriched by some of Irving Berlin’s most classic songs.

Amara Okereke and Philip Attmore in Top Hat:The Musical. Image uncredited.

When it comes to performances there's some serious upstaging. Philip Attmore as Jerry Travers captures Astaire's suave shuffle foot stylings to the point of suggesting an impersonation. Like Astaire what he lacks in vocal power Attmore compensates for with confident warmth. Amara Okereke as love interest Dale Tremont makes a compelling foil. Commanding, self-assured, Okereke’s Dale packs tonnes of vocal power. Yet charming and wonderful as the central relationship is, the show belongs to James Hume's doddery producer Horace and his troubled wife Marge, a superb Emma Williams. Both setting the stage alight post intermission with wonderful singing, acting and yes, even a little dancing with a show stopping rendition of Outside of That, I Love You. All brilliantly supported by James Clyde as manservant Bates, and Alex Gibson-Giorgio’s hilariously egotistical Italian designer, Alberto Beddini. Add an energised chorus, some strong dance routines and a glorious set, and Top Hat: The Musical serves up a Hollywood cocktail sure to delight.

Theatrical snobs might dismiss Top Hat: The Musical as a nostalgic sugar rush down memory lane to tap into the wallets of an older generation. But so what? Where is it written that all art has to be Avant Garde? It's okay to be entertained, the question is how good are you at it. Top Hat: The Musical was never going to beat the original, but as unadulterated entertainment its a stunning success on its own terms. Unapologetically nostalgic, Top Hat: The Musical delivers a truly enjoyable experience.

Top Hat: The Musical, a Chichester Festival Theatre production presented by Kenny Wax and Jonathan Church Theatre Productions, runs at Bord Gáis Energy Theatre until January 31.

For more information visit Bord Gáis Energy Theatre