‘An Officer and a Gentleman The Musical’ brought to you by the producers of the Curve production is a stylistic, edgy take on the much loved romantic drama. This production is jam packed with some of your favourite eighty’s music which lifts the energy of the overall production. Despite excellent performers, stylistic direction and brilliant technical decisions this musical somewhat misses the mark on some of the key themes of the production. Be part of the emotional journey of Zack Mayo, a fearless young officer candidate, and the captivating Paula Pokrifki, whose fiery spirit matches his own. Their encounters ignite a spark that transcends boundaries, awakening a passionate love that defies all odds.
Luke Baker as Zack Mayo gave an excellent performance, his vocal range was particularly impressive which melted into beautiful harmonies with his counterparts. Baker’s character development was well paced and delivered which kept the audience intrigued. Another key element of his performance was his stamina, Baker brought a wonderful energy to the stage. Georgia Lennon as Paula Pokrifki brought a naturalistic style of acting to the character which suited the role. Lennon is a terrific triple threat who gave her all on stage. At times Lennon’s style of acting through song was rather dramatic which conflicted with the more reserved character choices in her acting, I feel the character may be more convincing overall if there was more of a middle ground between these two components of Lennon’s performance.
Jamal Kane Crawford embodied the character of Gunnery Sergeant Emil Foley, his performance was excellent. His character followed a very familiar arc which is a joy to watch, he used moments of dance and “letting the mask slip” to bring a lightness to the character. Within the first act, the character has potential to become one note though this is due to the nature of the book. Paul French as Sid Worley gave a stand out performance. Worley is a complex character, it is evident from his stellar performance that French has taken a considerable amount of time to understand the life of his character. French is one to watch, he gave a seemingly effortless performance with killer vocals and a devastatingly emotional character journey.
Sinead Long had powerhouse vocals as Lynette Pomeroy, despite her performance being excellent overall it was her vocal ability which stood out over and above everything else. Long pleased the audience with effortless riffs and exciting touches to our favourite eighty’s pop hits making them her own. The character relationship between French and Long was excellent, from the offset they had the audience in the palm of their hands with the passion they displayed. The early footwork of their character relationship in the first act allowed the impact of the emotional turmoil in the second act.
Melanie Masson as Esther Pokrifki was excellent, her style of acting was elevated but not overly dramatic. Masson brough humour to her performance, her comedic timing and the delivery of her lines allowed her to play on the tensions and stereotypes well. Masson’s vocal ability was also excellent belting out some of our favourite hits.
Tim Rogers as Byron Mayo brought a darkness to the performance, his stage presence was excellent and his presence on stage brought with it a sense of dread. Rogers has the sensitive topic of addiction to explore and does well to make less obvious choices to keep the character entertaining.
Olivia Foster-Browne as Casey Seegar brought a glimmer of hope to the audience. Foster-Browne’s performance allowed for the audience to rally behind her and root for her in her character’s journey. Foster-Browne’s rendition of ‘When the Going Gets Tough’ was a real crowd pleaser as she showcased her phenomenal vocals and lifted the energy of the room.
As well as the previously mentioned cast, the cast is made up of some smaller roles and the ensemble which add great contrasts to the performance. This ensemble was phenomenal to watch as they brought a lightness to the musical, most of all because it seemed that they were consistently challenging each other, perhaps throwing in the odd improvised reaction or dance move to keep the musical exciting for the performers. As an audience member, it was a joy to watch the ensemble be playful and have fun. It highlighted the ephemerality of theatre and reminded the audience what theatre was all about – surprise and joy.
Musical Supervisor George Dyer delivers our favourite eighty’s hits! Despite the fact that we love these hits, they feel somewhat shoehorned in at times – although the music suits the context of the text it at times feels forced. On the contrary some of the hits work perfectly and are great crowd pleasers, driving the energy such as ‘Living On A Prayer’. The musical element may feel slightly out of place with some of the more dramatic moments of the book and they musical style with the context clash.
Director Nikolai Foster has created an edgy and stylised performance in terms of direction. The creative choices in movement really push for this eighty’s film to find its place within a musical context. Foster has handled some difficult topics with care and the consideration into the harsher moments of the play is well received. The feminist power within the play is lost as its concepts are outdated, the powerful ballads being sung in the factory become repetitive and the movement surrounding Casey Seegar’s defining moment being staged by her male counterparts completely takes away from the celebration of the success and takes away from the world of the play.
Choreographer Joanna Goodwin has created some very interesting and visually appealing choreography for this performance. The regimented routines are exciting and add to the overall atmosphere. The choreography of the male sailors at times verges on cringey with the amount of hip thrusting involved, though it has to be understood that the choreography fits in with the attitude of the time of the men and is down to personal taste. Overall the choreography was exciting with different styles of dance merged together to create a contemporary visual delight.
The book by Douglas Day Stewart and Sharleen Cooper Cohen feels like it needs further development. The pacing feels unbalanced with the first act bringing very little to the table and the second act packing a powerful punch. There are also inconsistencies left up to the audience’s imagination to fill in the gaps – I feel the writing almost relies too much on the audience knowing the film. The writing as the original film is wonderfully balanced and although the context may be outdated at times, it definitely has its place in theatre, though it feels that an adaptation into a stage play rather than a musical may have suited this text better.
Ben Cracknell has a wonderful lighting design which compliments the edgy, artistic direction from Nikolai Foster and the musical score. The lighting feels like a perfect blend between new technology and the feeling of the eighties with neon colours. Sound Designer Tom Marshall really added to the dramatic moments of the performance, adding to the tension without taking away from it. The sound bites played as you are sitting in the auditorium before the production begins is somewhat off putting and although it sets the scene it can become grating if you are sat for a while, perhaps some eighty’s hits would set the mood more. Michael Taylors multifunctional set is an amazing piece which allows the contemporary direction to fully shine, the set is used in a variety of clever ways to create new environments and has a real industrial feel to it. Michael Taylor’s costume is also excellent, selling the fantasy, however, at times there’s inconsistencies in some scenes such as the uniformed female hats being the same as the men for some scenes and different for others.
‘An Officer and a Gentleman The Musical’ is a fun night out for lovers of the film, the performers give their all and there is some really brilliant artistry on stage, though at times the diction takes away from important parts of text. Despite the attempt to bring the musical into the modern world and find its place within the plethora of brilliant modern musicals, it somewhat misses the mark. The adaptation still feels somewhat underdeveloped, as it hasn’t quite found its right fit. Jam packed with eighties hits and brilliant character journeys it’s definitely a great night out despite its downfalls.
‘An Officer and a Gentleman The Musical’ is playing at The King’s Theatre Glasgow until Saturday the 9th of March get your tickets here: https://www.atgtickets.com/shows/an-officer-and-a-gentleman-the-musical/kings-theatre-glasgow/calendar/2024-03-06 it is also making it’s way to His Majesty’s Theatre in Aberdeen later in the year.
Theatre Scotland 
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