Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dream Coat
Director: Paul Warwick Griffin
Cast: Earl Gregory, Bianca Le Grange, Jonathan Roxmouth, Dean Roberts
Venue: Theatre on the Bay, until November 5
Rating: 4 stars (out of 5)
BY Beverley Brommert
THAT dynamite comes in small packages is amply demonstrated by this production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dream Coat: a large-scale show in a compact venue. Creative staging, bold lighting and manic energy combine to make the size of the stage irrelevant as the audience is swept into the joyous surreality of this musical.
Strong leads, rich musicality and whimsical props like rainbow-hued wirework sheep and faux palm trees all play their part in beguiling the spectator, whose credulity is willingly suspended throughout this irreverent reinvention of Biblical legend. We have a vivid farrago of styles from the Wild West to calypso to 20th century pop, with the story of Joseph interpreter of dreams, providing the loosest of pegs to hang it all together.
There are even some South African touches, as Joseph’s wondrous coat is delivered by DHL and the aircraft transporting him to slavery in Egypt is marked Gupta 1...Director Paul Warwick Griffin is nothing if not inventive.
A ludicrous Angel freewheeling around the stage, a shrill gaggle of Adoring Girls, and generally grotesque costumes underscore the pervasive zaniness of the show. Earl Gregory’s portrayal of Joseph has lost none of its freshness and verve since his first appearance in the role in 2004, and Bianca le Grange is the omnipresent narrator. Glamorous and clear-voiced, she has the requisite stage presence to carry one of the most demanding parts in the show.
If Dean Roberts looks like a youngish man masquerading as Jacob the Patriarch, it’s because that is precisely what he is doing, and it doesn’t matter in the context of a production so blithely tongue-in-cheek. Rather, it confirms the whimsicality that is a significant part of Joseph’s charm.
As for Pharaoh, or...isn’t that Elvis? This show-stealing role is filled with all the panache audiences have come to expect from Jonathan Roxmouth, at his most expansive in gaudy costume and hectic footwear as he croons his way through familiar Presley hits.On opening night the large ensemble filling the stage failed initially to achieve synchronisation, but matters improved steadily as the show progressed so that by the time the white-costumed finale rounded off the evening, justice was done to Duane Alexander’s athletic choreography. Dancewise, Mila de Biaggi is a winner in both her appearances – first as Mrs Potiphar and later in an unlikely but arresting tango with one of Joseph’s brothers.For sheer escapist entertainment this cosmopolitan romp should not be missed.