A Little Night Music, Hayes Theatre Company, Hayes Theatre, 13 Oct-18 Nov

 

This is the fourth production I've seen of Sondheim's sophisticated romantic comedy, after one at the Sydney theatre company in 1990 starring Geraldine Turner, John Waters and a young Toni Collette as the maid, one at the Theatre Royal in 1997 with Ruth Cracknell, Helen Morse, John O'May and Pamela Rabe, and one on Broadway in 2010 with Bernadette Peters and Elaine Strich. It's a clever comedy of lust and misaligned love, albeit a comedy with a death and a suicide attempt (but then it is based on an Ingmar Bergman film).  Hugh Wheeler's script is the rare Sondheim script that has the structural skill and wit that Sondheim himself had (it's no wonder that Wheeler was recruited for this and "Sweeney Todd", one close to farce, one close to thriller, both genres that require a strong sense of structure), and the show is lush, romantic and all-round delightful. 

In all these previous viewings, though, the central pair, Desiree and Frederick, have always been played by performers somewhat older than me. So it's a bit of a shock to suddenly discover I'm past their age, and into an age where love-stories are very much second-time-around stories (it's also the first time that I've been in a permanent relationship while watching this). It's a show very much about misdirected desires finding a new (or returning to a previous) partner, with a complex series of five love triangles between eight characters, and of course, being Sondheim, all those triangles means it's a show entirely in derivativs of 3/4 (or waltz) time. 

Dean Bryant's production captures the sophistication and the grand passions inside the production well, using simple staging (minimal props, a couch, a couple of chairs) and the intimacy of the Hayes space to let the actors spill their personal issues straight into the audience as much as possible, dragging us into their dilemmas and issues. The orchestration for a band of five is surprisingly adaptable and rarely sounds underpowered (though there's a slight case of over-miking during the act one climax when the entire cast is singing at full force). 

Blazey Best enjoys the wryly teasing nature of Desiree, along with the rueful sadness during "Send in the Clowns". Leon Ford gives Frederick an endearing pompousness which drops away with repeated exposure to Desiree. Nancye Hayes gives Madame Armfeldt just the right amount of hauteur and pride in her debauched accommplishments. Melanie Bird is a sweetnatured-without-being-dim Anne, and Jeremi Campese manages Henrik's angst without making it painful rather than funny. Joshua Robson and Erin Claire as the Count and Countess Malcolm provide suitible pompousness and wounded-target-of-a-lot-of-that-pompousness. Kiana Daniele enjoys the role of the lusty Petra in every opportunity it gives her, wehther it be teashing with Anne and Henrik, or in her own spotlight song. 

In short, this is a production I was delighted to catch the closing night of after fearing I was going to miss it entirely before the production extended for one week. If it makes a comeback, be sure to catch it.