| Seven Brides For Seven Brothers A 19th century American Frontier musical based on the short story The sobbin' women by Stephen Vincent Benet Book: Lawrence Kasha and David S. Lindsay Music: Gene de Paul Lyrics: Johnny Mercer New songs: Al Kasha and Joel Hirschhorn Cast: Sam Kane (Adam Pontipee); Shona Lindsay (Milly); The Brothers: Joe Smith (Gideon); Ian Gareth Jones (Benjamin); Mostyn Lawrence (Caleb); Tom Tansey (Daniel); Darren Lee (Ephraim); David Ball (Frank); The Brides: Brenda Moore (alice); Amanda Sim (Dorcas); Karen Holmes (Ruth); Carrie Bolton (Liza); Carrie Sutton (Martha); Veronique Spiteri (Sarah) Choreographer: Adrian Allsopp Director: Maurice Lane Set Designer: Charles Camm Lighting Designer: David Howe Sound Designer: Glen Beckley Produced by: Martin Dodd and Peter Frosdick Venue: Playhouse, Greenside Place, Edinburgh Dates: 13-17 November 2001 Reviewer: Pat Napier |
| Review from Edinburgh News 13th November 2001 |
| I bet that the vast majority of the huge first night audience came because they remembered Howard Keel and Jane Powell singing the hits from the MGM Academy Award winning film. And I bet they also remember Russ Tamblyn's amazing, athletic dancing as Gideon. It's such a Classic that it's now a TV favourite too. I'm also willing to bet that they all went away thoroughly satisfied with this wonderfully energetic, ebullient and polished stage show. How many, though, turned to each other and said "I don't remember that number, do you"? It's a tribute to the creators of the new songs that they bedded in so well that it was a near-seamless join. First on stage was the tall, charismatic heart throb Sam Kane as mountain backwoodsman Adam, off on his search for his ideal bride. On hitting town and clapping eyes on the beautiful cook-waitress Milly, he immediately decided to 'court' and marry her - which he did there and then. Their return to the mountain cabin which he shared with his six brothers sparked off a campaign straight out of the Rape of the Sabine Women to find brides for them all from the same town. Milly's coaching, grooming and social education programme to prepare the boys for their search became the excuse for many very well-choreographed numbers, much fun and laughter, and spirited singing. Milly's role was very demanding. Edinburgh-born Shona Lindsay was on stage for almost the whole show and was outstanding in the role, equally easy and attractive in song as in speech. It was no mean feat that the six brothers came over as distinctively different and individualistic; each had developed their character to produce distinctive, strong, contrasting personalities, who turned out to be much more equal partners to the athletic Gideon than in the film version. The hoe-down set-piece dances were fleshed out by a strong, vividly-drawn support cast of townspeople. Sam Kane had a little difficulty in maintaining his somewhat taciturn character because he was having such fun. And so was the audience. At one point Gideon made the trek up to the high mountain cabin to entice Adam back from self-imposed isolation and to tell him that Milly had had a baby. Taciturn Adam was unmoved but Sam Kane dissolved when Gideon iced the cake by saying "And it's a girl". Who will forget his 'corpsing' into giggles of laughter? This very stylish show mixed old favourites such as Bless you beaituful hide and Goin courtin' with changes of pace such as in the lovely trio Love never goes away, which delighfully spliced in fragments of original melodies. The sets were clever and atmospheric and the sound just right. In the end, it was this show's memories and highlights which sent us out with smiles on our faces and songs in our hearts. |
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