An Officer and a Gentleman
Jun. 23rd, 2012 11:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
meteordustSo a few weeks ago, I went to see the preview of the new musical, An Officer and a Gentleman, premiering in Sydney. I'd never seen the famous '80s movie - not being a fan of Richard Gere, military academies, or "Up Where We Belong" - so I was going along for the heck of it, with correspondingly modest expectations.
Verdict: Not a must see, but had some moments.
The first half was okay, the second half was better.
Things I liked:
* The absolute highlight of the night: Bert LaBonte as Sergeant Emil Foley. He was riveting in the role, and his solo just before the Act One break, "I'll Be Damned", was a showstopper. He deserves many more good roles after this.
* The fantastic cast and the excellent singing. Ben Mingay (from Jersey Boys) as Zack Mayo: his acting was good, but when he opened his mouth to sing, wow! Amanda Harrison (from Wicked) as Paula Pokrifki: she is always excellent, and no exception here. Tara Morice (from Strictly Ballroom) as Esther Pokrifki: it was great to see her again, and her duet with Amanda was lovely. Everyone else: also fabulous.
* The story developments in the second half did come together into a reasonably engaging whole, even if I wished some things had turned out differently.
Things I didn't like:
* Seeing Manila - or, I suppose, its red light district - portrayed as an exotic sleazy hellhole. Because clearly we need more Asian cities represented that way.
* Odd artefacts of the '80s, a less politically correct time. For example, after Zack tells Paula he grew up as "a wop", she later affectionately calls him "Zack the wop". WTF? Was that in the movie?
* The ending needed an extra scene, where Zack and Paula reconcile after their argument (and he apologises), not just him waltzing into the factory to lift her from the drudgery of her life.
* One of the items of merchandise is a tank top with the quote "Bodacious Ta-Tas". Seriously?
Postscript: When the candidates changed into their naval dress whites, my immediate thought was, "Nick Seafort!"
Verdict: Not a must see, but had some moments.
The first half was okay, the second half was better.
Things I liked:
* The absolute highlight of the night: Bert LaBonte as Sergeant Emil Foley. He was riveting in the role, and his solo just before the Act One break, "I'll Be Damned", was a showstopper. He deserves many more good roles after this.
* The fantastic cast and the excellent singing. Ben Mingay (from Jersey Boys) as Zack Mayo: his acting was good, but when he opened his mouth to sing, wow! Amanda Harrison (from Wicked) as Paula Pokrifki: she is always excellent, and no exception here. Tara Morice (from Strictly Ballroom) as Esther Pokrifki: it was great to see her again, and her duet with Amanda was lovely. Everyone else: also fabulous.
* The story developments in the second half did come together into a reasonably engaging whole, even if I wished some things had turned out differently.
Things I didn't like:
* Seeing Manila - or, I suppose, its red light district - portrayed as an exotic sleazy hellhole. Because clearly we need more Asian cities represented that way.
* Odd artefacts of the '80s, a less politically correct time. For example, after Zack tells Paula he grew up as "a wop", she later affectionately calls him "Zack the wop". WTF? Was that in the movie?
* The ending needed an extra scene, where Zack and Paula reconcile after their argument (and he apologises), not just him waltzing into the factory to lift her from the drudgery of her life.
* One of the items of merchandise is a tank top with the quote "Bodacious Ta-Tas". Seriously?
Postscript: When the candidates changed into their naval dress whites, my immediate thought was, "Nick Seafort!"
