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THEATRE PREVIEWS |
| The new Australian musical
Priscilla opens at the Lyric Theatre on October 7. Troy Dodds shares his opinion on the
blockbuster show as he previews the most anticipated musical of the year.... The movie version of Priscilla Queen of the Desert blitzed box offices all over the world when it opened, and in the tradition of shows like Footloose and more recently Dirty Dancing, the film has predictably been turned into a stage musical.  The movie-cum-musical is nothing new but combined with the jukebox
era, it has become very hit-and-miss over the last decade. The jury remains out on some
shows - critics and audiences were divided, for example, on Dirty Dancing - and
others have never really gotten off the ground.So while there's much anticipation surrounding Priscilla, there's also a little bit of fear. What if this doesn't work? By all rights, it should. It was a hit film, the story is solid and it has the potential to build a wonderful tourist market. But we all know that sometimes, all of those things don't fall into place. The songs in the show, in the tradition of jukebox, are of course well-known and easy to sing along to. 'I Will Survive', 'Go West', 'I Love The Nightlife' and 'Shake Your Groove Thing' will all get a run. Someone get some smelling salts for the theatre purists who've just fainted. This is very much a disco musical, much like the movie was a disco film. Taking a work from the screen to the stage is no easy task. It's been a tough road, but an impressive team has been established along the way. Simon Phillips is in my view emerging as one of the most important figures in Australian theatre and to have him at the helm of this production as director is a real coup. Lizzy Gardiner's costumes are sure to be wonderful, and when you need a choreographer, why go for anyone else but Ross Coleman? The cast is tremendous - theatre veteran Tony Sheldon, TV actor Michael Caton and familiar names such as Danielle Barnes, Trevor Ashley and Daniel Scott all ensure this will be a firm productiom. Rising performers Sophie Carter, Dean Vince and Christina O'Neill all provide some excitement, helping the show reach a good balance between the established performers and the emerging ones. One of the big problems Priscilla has faced, in my view, is its marketing. Tacky comes to mind. The newspaper and television advertisements were disappointing to begin with, and it's attached a little bit of a stigma to this show. It now needs to rise above that tacky feeling, and while 'tacky' is an element that will help make this show a success, ensuring it still exudes a professional feel is vitally important. On the other side of the marketing coin, the publicity - handled by one of the best theatre publicists in the country - has been superb, with the glittering launch at Star City certainly providing plenty of fun. Priscilla will have its critics. Mainly, they will be the people who are desperate to see quality book musicals produced here. Shows like Wicked, which have 'blockbuster' written all over them. However, sometimes the movie-cum-musical, even in this modern era, can be a success. Just look at The Wedding Singer on Broadway at the moment - a show that laughs at itself, and has emerged as a wonderful success. And it's been a success because the team behind it ensured that while fun and frivolity was important, so was treating their audience with respect. The public isn't stupid. They don't want to pay close to $100 just to listen to music they've already got on 10 all-time hits albums at home. They want a quality night out, and a show they can talk about. Priscilla's big challenge is ensuring it doesn't lose touch with what its audience wants. With a quality cast and a team led by the brilliant Simon Phillips, there is no reason for Priscilla to fail, because despite its flaws in various facets, the team are working with something that's already a proven success. Handle it well, and Priscilla will become a hit. PRISCILLA Lyric Theatre, Star City (Sydney) Tickets: $59-$95 Bookings: 136 100 or www.ticketmaster.com.au |
