Madiba The Musical, Comedy Theatre, Tuesday October 9th 2018

Madiba The Musical, Comedy Theatre, Tuesday October 9th 2018

"Madiba The Musical" was presented at the Comedy Theatre by producers - The Prestige Presents, You Prod and Broadway Mad on Tuesday October 9th 2018

For those new to my blog I write about the holistic experience of attending the theatre. I buy my own tickets. So if you want a re-telling of the story please refer to the links for further information or for further insights.  Note, that I may provide different links for repeated main words or phrases.  I write for my memories of what I have seen, and is more of a stream of consciousness.

Arriving at the Comedy Theatre at 6.20 pm for the 7.00 pm show I did not expect to be able to buy a programme.  They were not available in the foyer at 6.28 pm and the concession stand was behind the closed doors as is often the case on Broadway.  I like to be able to read the programme prior to seeing a show.  Not having a programme available reduces the likelihood of patrons buying a copy.  I was told by the two ushers "that they will be available in a minute".  I went back a few minutes later, and still the programmes were not available.

I asked to give them the money to buy one for me on the other side of the glass door.  Again - declined.  At this time - I am not amused.

Finally the doors opened at 6.40 pm and I could buy one - but I had to have my ticket scanned.  The inside of the theatre is too dark to read, and I wanted to read the programme in the light.

The programme is good value with the detailed notes though some standard credits such as lighting, set and costume design are missing on page three.  The fuller credits are located at the back of the programme.  There are two pages of advertisements compared to some programmes that are full of advertisements.  The use of the South African flag's colours was appealing and relevant for the show.  Spell checking was needed for the occasional error before publication.

I must say the magnets are better value at $5.00 Australian compared to $10 USD on Broadway for other shows.

The show began at about 7.03 pm, but it was a false start as the producer Neil Croker made an announcement about the perils of live theatre as one actress had lost her voice, and this was to be the 7th performance!  He explained that Ruva Ngwenya would sing this role from the wings but the actress would be on stage doing the moves.  This heightened the audience's anticipation for the show.  Plus, this makes it an even more special event to be be able to "say we were there the night when... happened."

I can deal with that - as I have seen some great performances by understudies, or people with a script in hand, injured and many other examples.  So my radar and expectations were buzzing with anticipation - as I know how the cast must be feeling a range of emotions - excited, nervous, or scared.

The good news is the replacement voice had no major impact on the show.  In fact, Ruva Ngwenya did a marvellous job filling in, and also performing her own role of Winnie Mandela.

Sadly there was no pre-show announcement about the use of phones and recording etc.

"Madiba The Musical" has been co-adapted into English by Dylan Hadida and Dennis Watkins from the original French production by Jean-Pierre Hadida and Alicia Sebrien.

Directed by Pierre-Yves Duschesne and Dennis Watkins they deliver a show that has more focus on the effects and impact of Nelson Mandela, rather than on getting inside the man himself.

The opening number was lively and set the scene, though towards the end of this routine there were a few of the cast bumped into each other.  I can forgive this as the cast were on high alert to deliver a good show under the circumstances.

The Sound Design by I assume is The Head of Sound, Evan Drill needs to ensure the clunk-i-ness of turning microphones on and off is fixed urgently.  The actual sound quality is awful at the best of times, for example a performer would enter and begin speaking and then their microphone was turned either on. or, up in volume.

Singing by the cast was tuneful and melodic, but it should be been inspiring.   The size of the three piece band needs to be expanded to give a richer and more dynamic sound to the musical score. The score needs re-orchestrating with a larger band to bring out more African flavours.

The Lighting Design was very ordinary with a lack of focus on characters or location.  There were so many missed opportunities to create a unified production with all departments.  The ending with the South African coloured spots could have resonated more to create a final South African flag.

The first act is a mish-mash of chronological events that you blink and you nearly miss them.  At the 53 minute mark I felt the first inkling of compassion and emotion and it was with the secondary story line of Helena Van Leden played by Madeline Perrone and William Xulu played by Barry Conrad.

Act Two delivers the next slice of an emotional roller coaster during Scene 4 where Helena Van Leden played by Madeline Perrone and William Xulu played by Barry Conrad are in a park in Johannesburg with a park bench clearly marked "Whites only".  

Helena's reunion with her father in Scene 8 is the highlight of the show.  This is clearly where the impact of Nelson Mandela bears fruit.    The trio "It's Time Now To Forgive" was the most stirring song in the show.  For this the price of my ticket was worth it.

Helena's father, Peter Van Leden was played with sincerity and conviction by Blake Erickson. His South African accent did not waver, nor did his resolve in his character's work.  Blake Erickson showed us an emotional and reflective struggle for his character's journey.  Playing the father Peter and his relationship with both Helena and William made seeing the show worthwhile.

I understand the historical significance of Nelson Mandela and admire him for his humanity and leadership.  Oddly enough and surprisingly, I felt more compassion for the secondary story line of Helena, William and Peter.

I think the book needs reworking to heighten the focus on Nelson Mandela and to increase the drama for this young couple with more potential consequences that were brushed over in act one.

The staging at times is very clunky.  The visuals projecting the years onto the cyclorama are flashed too quickly - blink and you will miss them.  The minimum five second rule for visual needs serious consideration to frame the time/year or location.

Segues between scenes needed more direction and coordination of lighting, sound and choreography to create a unified and cohesive production.  Many times our focus was drawn to the the entrance and exit of the sets rather than the story or the characters.

During Act Two, Scene Seven where Nelson Mandela is released from prison, there is a lack of theatrical co-ordination in the emotional thread of the story.  We, as the audience, wanted to relish in this emotional and historic moment, were denied this historical moment with the clunky staging of the sliding of two prison gates joining together and the cast walking on from the wings with Nelson Mandela.  Whew - this was awful.  Then it became corny with the dancers breaking through the gates to dance in gumboots.

Maybe Nelson Mandela could have made a slow walk of freedom in a tunnel of side lights would have made more of an emotional impact.  Then bring the two jail gate trucks together to see him to walk through.  Or bring the trucks together and have him walk to them slowly with the waiting crowd downstage to greet him.  But NOT - just all walk on together - as it looked like another high school production moment. More thought was needed to make the audience feel some emotional connection.

Refer to Lindsay Kemp and his famous "Flowers" walk, or the entrance by Helen Buday as Eliza in the 1988 production of "My Fair Lady".  However the choose to stage Nelson Mandela's release from prison - please re-stage this scene!

Costumes by Sabrina Gomis Vallee were not fitted for some performers.  The worst example was when Riley Sutton wore a jacket that was too long and baggy and swam on his body.  I appreciate the coat covered up his previous costume but this just looked ridiculous as if in a high school production.

Choreography by Johan Nus varied in tone for different scenes.  There did not seem to be a cohesive framework to suit the show.  Some performers were not able to accurately replicate the steps.  I understand the various abilities and skills, but when there is an ensemble number for all performers - they must be drilled accordingly to be able to execute the choreography.  The slapping gumboot dance reminded me of a mix between German Schuhplattler dance and the big production number from "Mary Poppins" the musical.

The choreography during two solos distracted from the lyrics of the songs.  Maybe the dancers could have been further upstage or in silhouette to frame, but not draw focus away from the songs.

There were some good solid performances but not outstanding enough to enrich the soul.  Of note was Tim "Timomatic' Omaji as Sam Onotou for his enthusiastic performance, while the reserved and understated performance of Perci Moeketsi not only played, but channelled the role of Nelson Mandela.  The Narrator played by David Denis gave a solid performance as if he were a fly-on-the-wall recounting events.

Overall the show was amateurish at times and requires work.

"Madiba The Musical" obtained a generous 6.5/10 from me and a 6/10 from my partner.