There are still a bunch of musical theatre treats to catch on BBC iplayer, but hurry because some disappear this coming weekend.
There are two Elaine Page programmes to watch, with the First Lady of British MT at her best. In Elaine Page at the BBC, we get a compilation of her many tv moments. In a 1980 programme she showcases Don’t Cry For Me Argentina, and it’s nteresting to see her – fresh-faced and with a lighter tone to her singing range. She often tells self-deprecating stories about her lack of height, and here she relates how every night of Evita a stagehand had his head under her ball gown as he lifted her backstage onto a ladder for the Eva balcony.
In 1981 she tells of her 4 days’ notice to star in Cats, when Judi Dench literally fell out of the show. She also tells how for the first 10 days of the run the lyrics to Memory changed almost every night. Fast forward to 1989 and Elaine is singing at the White House for Reagan and visits Broadway to see Anything Goes. And she decided to co-produce a West End outing for it. Interestingly singing the title song on Wogan she is joined by tap-dancing sailors, including Brighton-based international choreographer Stephen Mear.
Returning to jokes about her height she gives us a sturdy heartfelt rendition of Short People by Randy Newman in a glittering Royal Albert Hall event. In an excerpt from the Two Ronnies in 1983 we get an up tempo version of Annie’s Tomorow, with big hair and an even bigger voice. A 2000 edition of Parkinson reveals Cry Me A River – moody, dramatic, full-throttle and gripping. The snippets continue with a gender-swapping version of One Night In Bangkok from Chess. Incidentally she turned down Les Mis to do Chess ! And on it goes with Windmills Of Your Mind, You’re The Top, and There’ll Be Bluebirds Over – well you know where.
And if you’re not sated, you can also tune in to I’m Still Here, a Royal Albert Hall extravaganza, where her singing style is bold, aggressive and powerful, marking 50 years on the stage. Luck Be a Lady, Summertime, Good Morning Starshine all follow and nothing disappoints. Sondheim had penned new lyrics for I’m Still Here fo her and they’re sharp and witty:” been called a dwarf… I’ve had a lovely career, and I’m here..I got to grab a bit of Rice.. most of my fan club are Queer and they’re here”.
By contrast The Sound Of Petula – featuring, well, yes Petula Clark didn’t reach my expectations at all. Made in 1973, it’s part of a series but this edition is made up of viewers’ requests. It disappoints at every turn. Effortless, certainly but also quite often lacking soul and emotion, she hits the notes but gives us little else. From the kitsch How Are Things in Glocaamorra, to a strangely passionless I Don’t Know How To Love Him, and a bizarre outdoor rain medley – in the rain.
There’s a Piaf moment, but No Regrets, though sung in impeccable French, is annoyingly soft and gentle. Moving on….
Though it contains only soupçons of songs, BBC’s Imagine programme about Andrew Lloyd Webber’s life story – and his book Unmasked – is revelatory and gripping. “I am terribly boring’, he tells interviewer Alan Yentob, but he’s far from it.
He calls it” a sort of confessional- as truthful as I can remember”. From stories of his childhood miniature theatre-building and writing of travel journeys to ancient ruins, when he was 14, we get a glimpse of his Bohemian upbringing with famous composer father William, cello maestro brother Julian and a wider ménage which included the up and coming classical pianist John Lill. So jealous of his mother’s obsession with Lill, did Andrew become that he took himself off with pills, bent on suicide. It’s a staggering revelation.
The programme allows him to dissect his working methods and his love of melody. There are many backstage stories of Phanton, Joseph, Jesus Christ Superstar and the ill-fated Stephen Ward. Well worth a watch. As he tells a bunch of wide-eyed child musicians: ”music is the one thing that brings us all together”.
Go to BBC iplayer but hurry while the shows are still on.
