by Peter St.James
COMPANY is a musical about Robert, a native New Yorker with commitment issues and his relationship with three girlfriends and five couples (one couple about to get married and one divorced), on and around his 35th birthday. Robert could almost be played by a different actor in each scene as he seems to be seen differently by each couple and girlfriend, hence having a different nickname by each (like Bobby, Robbo, and Robby).
Lincoln Stone made a very handsome and likeable Robert. You could easily see why he was so popular and had so many close friends, while still remaining an outsider. Even in the scene where Steven Craven as Peter suggests to him about the possibility of a homosexual fling, it was totally believable and beautifully played.
Although this is essentially an ensemble cast and was well sung and acted throughout it was the women who really stood out. The three girlfriends Marta, Kathy and April were particularly strong, Samantha Giffard was spot on as the free-spirited Marta, belting out her hymn to New York (‘Another Hundred People’) and Lucy Evans as air hostess April gave a very funny performance that was brilliantly conceived.
Marisa Leigh Boynton did a great job of her patter song (‘Getting Married Today’), but it was Lucy Williamson as the much married Joanne who was a revelation. Obviously younger than originally intended, she stepped out of the long shadow cast by the legendary Elaine Stritch in the original production and breathed new life into the part and made it her own. She delivered the acerbic dialogue with relish and brought the house down with her wonderful rendition of ‘The Ladies Who Lunch’ number.
Sondheim and Furth's multi award-winning musical has been given a first rate treatment by Michael Strassen. Musical Director Michael England also did an excellent job orchestrating the score for a six piece band. This production was first staged at the Edinburgh Festival in 2007 and I believe most of the cast have been retained. I can’t fault Mr Strassen’s seamless direction and choreography, and though it works beautifully in The Union space, it is a shame it will not be seen by a larger audience.
WHATSONSTAGE ****
by Michael Coveney
Even now, Company still feels like a new sort of musical, a smart and sassy series of mordant marital sketches in the style of Jules Feiffer conceptually glued to a sexually confused bachelor’s thirty-fifth birthday party, and his sexual identity crisis.
This was the first of six Broadway collaborations between Stephen Sondheim and Harold Prince, and I haven’t enjoyed the piece so much since I saw it three times during the first London run at Her Majesty’s.
In fact, with A Little Night Music revived at the Garrick, we have the only Sondheim/Prince London commercial successes available to prove clearly why this was so. They are both masterpieces, complete in their different ways, musically brilliant and superbly crafted. I love most of Follies, some of Sweeney Todd and all of Into the Woods (not sure about Pacific Overtures), but Company is, and always has been, very special.
Prince hammered out the structure with George Furth writing the sketches, and Michael Strassen’s Union staging isolates Lincoln Stone’s good-looking Robert (Bobby) - think George Hamilton, or Michael Praed - on a pedestal, the five couples forming company in lines, tableaux, trios, duets and processional chorales around him.
You can see the musical more clearly now as a gay man’s bid for social dependency without strings. “Being Alive” is a plaintive cri de coeur, not a compromised cop-out, as once thought. And the songs - what songs! - point numbers, anthems and those rhythmically motored items, create sounds of the city as well as relationship conflict and inner heartbreak. And how does Lucy Williamson do “The Ladies Who Lunch”? Very well indeed. She’s a lot younger than Elaine Stritch, or seems so, more glamorous and she belts it magnificently. The girls are all good, but I especially loved Lucy Evans’ April the sexy air hostess, hugging herself in the opening number (less “Bobby baby” than “Bobby booby”) and bedding Bobby in red lingerie before traipsing off sadly to “Barcelona”.
The five-strong band under Michael England at the piano streams the melody lines expertly on muted trumpet and clarinet, while Bobby’s pals are nicely differentiated by Tom Hyatt, Nigel Pilkington and Paul Callen. Without stars, this is an ideal chamber version in a dankly atmospheric venue where pocket musicals are a speciality.
THE TELEGRAPH ****
by Jackie Cobham
Approaching its 40th birthday, director Michael Strassen has assembled a wealth of international talent for this new revival of Company.
Set in Manhattan, 1970, Company is, in effect, a series of vignettes bound together by George Furth’s inspired book and the omnipresence that is Stephen Sondheim. Five couples, all with various dysfunctions, populate their friend Robert’s (Lincoln Stone) life, and all think they know what’s best for him.
The trouble is Robert ‘Bobby’. is not only sexually confused (he has three girlfriends and a secret male admirer), fabulous looking, and 35 - he hates it. He hates being put on a pedestal, hates his age and even more so hates the way his friends relentlessly try to get him settled down and married. Resistance is futile. The only thing is, Bobby just doesn’t know it… yet.
Musically, Company is polished. Strassen’s staging makes the most of the dark, claustrophobic, dimly lit Union Theatre. The choreography; glorious in its simplicity sets the tone and flavour of show as too the performances which are on the whole good - some exceptional, in particular Lucy Evans’ April the sexy air hostess. Her comic timing and faultless vocals were luminously delivered. You warm to her naïve persona as a complement to Bobby’s brash one track mind; caressing herself in the opening number then seducing him in a red lingerie ensemble before bouncing off to ‘Barcelona’.
The other exceptional talent on show is Jane Quinn. In ‘Bless this Day’ her exquisite and note-perfect vocals only highlights what a fine operatic voice she has. A notable mention also goes to Samantha Giffard, Katherine Eames and Lucy Evans, again – playing Bobby’s girlfriends in ‘You Could Drive a Person Crazy’.
The joy of this production lies in its unfussiness, relying solely on the talented cast, a cracking set of stories and musicians lead Michael England who effortlessly mirror every nuance the cast could throw at them. On the eve of its 40 anniversary Company has lost none of its capacity to entertain and for that reason alone, I loved every minute.
THE STAGE
by Paul Vale
In present day Manhattan, Robert’s married friends are desperate for him to meet somebody and settle down.
Stephen Sondheim practically closed the chapter here with his definitive musical on the relationship issues. Company is a near-perfect marriage of the rules and regulations of old school musical theatre with a contemporary book and lyrics. Many of the musical numbers such as Another Hundred People and The Little Things You Do Together have become popular cabaret fare but mention must be made of George Furth’s edgy book that binds the whole together.
This particular production can be judged an unqualified success. Michael Strassen’s terse direction keeps pace with the vicissitudes of this particular Manhattan clique while Neil Lamont’s bare bones set reflects either the emptiness of Robert’s emotional existence or, perhaps more likely, a limited budget.
Strassen has gathered together a highly talented ensemble who evidently find the whole affair a delightful experience judging by the way they embrace each role. Samantha Seager as Sarah, Jane Quinn as Jenny and Marisa Leigh Boynton as Amy all prove to be star turns while Lucy Williamson’s Joanne brings the house down with the apocryphal Ladies Who Lunch. Samantha Giffard is charming as the kooky Marta and Lucy Evans hysterical as the stewardess, April.
Paul Callen as Paul and Gido Schimanski as Larry stand out in the male roles but ultimately this is Robert’s show and Lincoln Stone is breathtaking. From the simplest of scenes he appears as the charming everyman, at turns teasing every girl around and then tortured by his inability to commit, leading to the ultimate in finale numbers, Being Alive.
In these uncertain times of early closures in the West End, it restores one’s faith in the arts that so much good can be achieved on such a small scale.
DAILY EXPRESS ****
by Simon Edge
YOU don’t need a huge budget to stage a first-class production of Stephen Sondheim’s “concept” musical from 1970, in which a resolutely single man is nagged to settle down by the five married couples who are his best friends.
All you want is an affinity for the daringly abstract material, a strong ensemble cast to bring passion to it, and a set of voices to carry off a brilliant score that includes the comic Getting Married Today and the rousing Being Alive.
That’s just what director Michael Strassen, a leading man from West End musicals, has assembled at this up-and-coming fringe venue behind London’s South Bank.
The space seats ninety, with the seats arranged at an angle across the room, so that the performers occupy a bare corner next to the band, with no set but a simple black box.
All fourteen of them could end up cluttering it, but under Strassen’s tight control they are at once mannered and edgy, with a raw power that makes the plot-light piece fizz along.
The stop-start, jazz-hands choreography flares excitingly and the unamplified voices range from good to stunning – notably the operatic Jane Quin as crazy-faced Jenny and Lucy Williamson as a knowing, bitter Joanne, with her show-stopping Ladies Who Lunch.
Australian actor Lincoln Stone has an air of laconic amusement as Robert, the bachelor at the heart of it all, which makes his own belting voice all the more magnificent.
He also brings a subversive touch to the scene where he tactfully rebuffs the embarrassing gay advances of his married friend Peter (Steven Craven). He sticks to the script, which tells us that Robert is not gay, but the tears in his eyes – unseen by Peter – say otherwise.
A couple of the American accents don’t make it all the way across the Atlantic, and one otherwise strong singer is lyrically overpowered by the band.
But this production has such heart, and is so well managed, that those seem very minor quibbles. It’s a rare chance to see full-throated Sondheim at fringe prices.
THE BRITISH THEATRE GUIDE
by Sandra Giorgetti (2009)
Company had its first Broadway production in 1970, a period when the average bridegroom was aged a youthful 24; it stands to reason then that 30-something Robert and his friends should be so troubled with his marital status and that, as a piece of theatre, Company was something of a commentary on New York life at the time.
However, we now live in a society in which the number of unmarried adults has risen and the number who have chosen to marry has fallen, thereby producing the lowest marriage rates since they were first calculated in 1862 so, as the show approaches its big 4-0, does it have a contemporary relevance?
Well, frankly, not really. No matter that - dated though it may be - Michael Strassen's striking Company all but banishes such concerns for an entertaining and thought-provoking couple of hours. With this production we can forget the rather sanitising approach taken by Mr Nunn, and enjoy Sondheim's insight, wit and lyrics complete with incisive, uncomfortable edges.
Strassen's directorial skill is evident - the pacing is almost faultless and he is not afraid of difficult silences or of taking the roof off the building with the sheer energy and volume of the soaring ensemble pieces under the musical direction of Michael England (assistant MD, Christopher Mundy).
The staging is also undertaken by Strassen and it is slick and fitting and makes excellent use of the space and its limitations.
Lincoln Stone is an outstanding Robert. He is vocally strong and with the emotional intensity dial set at maximum I felt pushed into to my seat as if by some explosive force. When Robert is at his more vulnerable, Stone appears to well-up too easily, but he is apt and precise in his well-considered reactions so his characterisation is sensitive and engaging.
Another stand-out performance is delivered by Lucy Williamson as Joanne. She plays the night-club scene brilliantly and "The Ladies Who Lunch" is dazzlingly contemptuous in her skilled hands.
Jane Quinn's memorable voice is a rich addition to the ensemble as Jenny and the operatic commentary to Amy's "Getting Married Today".
They say that you can tell a lot about a man by looking at the women he dates and 'Bobby's girls' (Katherine Eames, Samantha Giffard and Lucy Evans) make a great job of "You Could Drive a Person Crazy". Similarly the husbands make a better job of the big group numbers than the subtler ones and "Have I Got a Girl for You" has a gratifyingly acerbic sting.
This is unpasteurised Sondheim and I'm all for it!
SUNDAY EXPRESS ****
by Mark Shenton
A tiny fringe revival of Company, Sondheim's 1970 musical about the emotional minefield of relationships and the attractions of singledom, is pitch-perfect in every sense. Each of it's brittle, brilliant songs sting and scintillate by turns and this youthful cast project them with unamplified grace and power.
TOTALLYTHEATRE.COM *****
by Lizz Brain
Stephen Sondheim created the ultimate work about relationships when he wrote the music and lyrics to accompany George Furth's series of vignettes.
And in this watertight production at the tiny Union Theatre, the piece should finally be on its way to the West End outing it so rightly deserves.
Director Michael Strassen simply gets it. Every word is as fresh as the day it was written, the songs delivered with panache, punch and pathos. Quite a feat for a piece approaching its own 40th birthday.
Musically it's slick, the choreography is fun, the performances good - some outstanding, all centred around confirmed bachelor Bobby on his 35th birthday, and his relationships with his three girlfriends and the five married couples who think they know best.
Over the years the piece has become deliciously familiar and most of the songs have become standard stock of the musical theatre canon, from Being Alive to You Could Drive A Person Crazy.
But here there are moments of new and undiscovered joy. As Bobby, an excellent Lincoln Stone delivers a masterclass in how to act a song with Marry Me A Little, the gamut of emotion etched in his face as his voice soars, without ever being in danger of over-egging it.
Equally, Lucy Williamson resists the temptation to offer Joanne's usual drunk and angry The Ladies Who Lunch, offering instead one woman's heartbreaking realisation of what she's become. It's a definitive performance which makes true sense of a song which is often under or overdone.
Lucy Evans has a lot of fun with air hostess April, turning her into a sexual equal for Bobby, stripping to red undies and keeping on top of their liaison, literally, before leaving him there to head to Barcelona. Samantha Seager and Tom Hyatt raise laughs as Sarah and Harry's bickering finds a physical outlet, while Paul Callen and Marisa Leigh Boynton squeeze every drop of emotion from Amy and Paul's pre-wedding nerves.
The set is as simple as can be for such a small space, but is worked effectively, and it's a pleasure to see musical director Michael England and band part of the birthday celebrations.
It would be a crime against Sondheim for this not to transfer, and with a long enough run could be just the way to celebrate the show's own birthday. Maybe life for Company will begin at 40.
MUSIC OMH ****
by Sam Smith
First hitting Broadway in 1970, Company is one of Stephen Sondheim’s best loved musicals. It has been performed so often over the years, by professionals and amateurs both, that I had started to assume there was nowhere left to take it.
But in this production by the Union Theatre, who staged the same composer’s Sweeney Todd last October, Sondheim’s ‘best’ is taken, and made even better.
The joy of this production lies in the sheer extent to which Bobby is portrayed as an isolated individual. With the stage bare and dimly lit, as the company sing their opening song, there is little sense of claustrophobia at being surrounded by such ‘ghastly’ people, as is normally the case. Rather, with the cast standing in a straight line chanting ‘Happy Birthday’ together, the pre-eminent fear is that to marry is to lose oneself.
Excepting a few moments when the interaction between some couples lacked a little in fine tuning, the acting was superb. Particular accolades must go to Lucy Williamson as Joanne, a seductive but needful lady who feels that youth and life are slipping through her fingers. Lucy Evans also deserves mention for taking a risk by throwing herself so completely into portraying Bobby’s bimbo girlfriend, and most certainly coming up trumps.
The production was also characterised by strong singing, not least from Jane Quinn in Bless this Day whose purposely exaggerated warbles didn’t mask her fine operatic voice, and from Samantha Giffard, Katherine Eames and Lucy Evans in the trio You Could Drive a Person Crazy.
But the star of the show was undoubtedly Lincoln Stone as Bobby, who achieved the right balance between always doing and saying the right thing when in company, whilst simultaneously seeming detached from everyone around him. Indeed, with his voice so strong, resonant, and full of despair, as he sang the emotive finale, Being Alive, I didn’t know whether to applaud wildly or burst into tears.
But, in the end, I decided that it was the former action that he, and the production as a whole, deserved more.
REVIEWS GATE
by Geoff Ambler
An immeasurable joy complete with some of Sondheim’s finest music.
The Union Theatre manages to fit as much under its Southwark railway arch as any of its bigger relations, with their bigger budgets, bigger stages and matching seats can and they don’t even have their own piano; although you can help them, one key at a time, to rectify this.
Dealing with Bobby’s life once all his friends have married, Company starts at his surprise thirty fifth birthday. He is cynical about marriage, feeling comfortable in his bachelorhood and intent on remaining the company his friends have around. A series of unconnected evenings spent with his paired friends and meetings with past girlfriends unsettles him and he begins to doubt his once comfortable life. Bobby soon realises that his views on marriage have left him, instead of living, missing out on life. There is little else to the story, but little else is required; this is Sondheim and Furth and their musical study of one mans relationships is an immeasurable joy.
Company is strewn with memorable numbers within which Sondheim sketches Bobby’s friends, lavishing the show with some of the finest songs in musical theatre culminating in the inspiring Being Alive. With the Union Theatre’s flair for fielding serious talent time and time again, each number is delightfully staged and magnificently performed. Michael Strassen’s direction makes the most of the fantastic, compact space and with little set tells a story and brings Bobby and his friends to life.
Lincoln Stone has one of those unforgettable names and his Bobby is certainly one of those unforgettable performances. He is cynical, cool, funny, compelling to watch and vocally dazzling.
So many of Sondheim’s songs stand on their own, covers abound but it is in the context of their show that their real impact can be realised. Lucy Williamson’s Ladies Who Lunch, an introspective view of Joanne’s existence, is magnificent and memorable and show stopping, much like Williamson herself whose energy and passion through this number stops the show. Marisa Leigh Boynton’s manic bride Amy achieves unbelievable vocal feats with her hilarious Getting Married Today.
I was just a few moments into the opening number before I knew I was back and safe in the hands of the finest writer of musicals, well certainly those dealing with the realities of relationships. The Union Theatre’s Company certainly is more must see Fringe Theatre. Book a ticket before the rush and while you are there sponsor a piano key.