Burke's foray to West End a huge hit



Right place, right time, right person and no, Simon Burke is not talking about himself, but of his co-star, Connie Fisher who was chosen from millions of hopefuls a little over a year ago by the general public as the star of The Sound of Music on the West End.

Speaking to AussieTheatre.com from his London dressing room after Wednesday night's performance of the popular musical, Burke said the show was lucky in that they had "unearthed a diamond which is Connie, who was born to play Maria".

He has nothing but praise for his lovely co-star and his admiration and respect for her extends to their incredible on stage chemistry, which is electric.

Not only does Simon Burke reside in the 'Judy Garland' dressing room, but he plays the handsome, loveable Captain Von Trapp, and has a large poster of himself out the front of the theatre which as we pass you can see he is rather proud of. The theatre is the London Palladium, one of the city's oldest and most famous theatres. Best known perhaps for its Judy Garland/Liza Minelli double bill concert the London Palladium has as Burke suggests a kind of "faded glory, shabby but comfortable".

The theatre is beautiful in its old dust covered way and perfectly suits The Sound of Music and the popularist audience it generally attracts. The history of the London Palladium and the shows it attracts including the The King and I with Yul Brenner and La Cage Aux Follies with George Hearn and Denis Quilley, means it has always been a popularist theatre.

"With 2400 people in every night I estimate 30-40 per cent have never seen a theatre production before," Burke said.

"With this show we have the brand of it ingrained in us and even if you hate The Sound
of Music, everyone has a memory of it, good or bad".

He mentions that even when he and Connie were walking down the street at the weekend, drunks who probably have not even seen the show were slurring 'Doe a deer' at them.

Here was Simon, meant to have as he puts it "a cruisy year" in 2007, hosting some events, performing in a bit of this and that and he finds himself towards the end of the infamous Kookaburra Company run being called by his London agent to audition for The Sound of Music, with the condition being he fly out that night because rehearsals start in three and a half weeks. A matinee and evening performance of Company later, Burke packs a small gym bag full of nothing much and jumps on a plane to head to the audition that will completely change his year and possibly his life.

The back story to this is that Simon has had four bumper years as part of the Adelaide Cabaret Festival. Year one he has Jason Robert Brown play piano for him while he sung his exquisite song 'King of the World' from Songs for a New World, year two he plays George Puttnam in the concert that launched Malty and Shire's new musical Take Flight which then as he excitedly tells me, had its world premiere at London's famous Meiner Chocolate Factory over the British summer in 2007 (this theatre was also the host for UK premiere productions of Jason Robert Brown's The Last Five Years and Jonathan Larson's Tick Tick...Boom!). Year three sees Simon playing the lead in The Wild Party, whose musical director is Andrew Lippa, writer of the show. Which brings us to year 4 - Simon is asked to join the festival once again to work on An Evening of Cabaret with Jeremy Sams, featuring Phillip Quast. He is reluctant to take part for a fourth year in a row, but thinks what the hell, Phillip's a friend and you only live once. Jeremy and Simon clicked and over the two days they got to know each other and Jeremy said to Simon "you should work in London, there are so many things you could be cast in" and emphasised "don't wait too long".

Simon brushed it off as a lovely thing to say, but that nothing would come of it. It turns out he did not have to wait long because the call for The Sound of Music was just around the corner with Jeremy Sams as the director. Over an 18 day period Simon flew the horrendous long haul return trip from Sydney to London twice in order to finish Company and be back in time to start rehearsals for the new show.

Simon has been entertaining children for years on Play School, but says working 'with' kids is a whole new ball game.

"Ingenuously, it is weird to be working with children that haven't grown up with me, and did not experience Play School," he said.

He apologises to me as he leaves me in his dressing room, placated with a glass of NZ Reisling, to briefly attend to fans before 'Connie
comes out'. He returns five minutes later saying he did not want to worry me by telling me when he left, and luckily tonight was 'quiet',
but he sometimes spends over half an hour when he comes out of stage door signing autographs and talking to the fans. It is not Burke being cocky, in fact, entirely the opposite. As he rightly puts it the people particularly coming to this show, which is off the back of reality television have "an real investment" in the production. They sent text messages to vote Connie in and in turn according to Burke, "they have come to see their investment pay off".

I ask are they die-hard fans, these people who queue at stage door? No, Burke says, "every night it is something different, a 60th Wedding
Anniversary, a six year old's birthday, or a first night ever at the theatre often with people who have travelled a long way to see the show". He is so aware that without the audience there would be no production.

Burke wants to give something back, more than his performance, a little piece of himself to each awestruck new fan or theatre goer. One
of the most appealing things about Simon is his attitude to his career and his gratitude for what he has been given in life. When asked what
his highlight about being back in London after an 11 year absence, he says "doing the show". With the theatre life well and truly ongrained
on Simon Burke, it is clear he is, like Connie, a diamond in the rough.

- Skye Crawford

You can find out what Australians are up to in London thanks to West End Whispers, Skye Crawford's weekly column that appears on AussieTheatre.com every Saturday. Click here.