Saturday Night Fever is set in 1979 in Brooklyn, New York and tells the story of Tony Manero, a 19 year old guy with a job in a hardware store that has no chance for progression, who still lives with his parents and a has dream that may never come to anything- dancing. He has only one aim in life and that is to become a disco king, which is trivialized by his parents as they favour his brother Frank Jr, who has a respectable profession as a priest.
Saturday Night Fever
Tony meets Stephanie who also has ambitions to get out of Brooklyn as a successful dancer too so they train together and enter a dance competition that will change their lives in ways they never imagined.
The show was outstanding in all areas- the costumes, the singing, the dancing, the acting, the props and the lighting. I could only describe it as 'slick' if I had to find a word. The stage had many impressive elements, however the most technically advanced and eye-catching were three, giant cubes, that were edged in neon lights and moved depending on the needs of the scene. In the scenes the in the clubs you might have expected the music to overshadow the dialogue, however the middle cube came out into the front of the stage and housed the acts in a booth like structure to give the impression that they were in a quiet corner. Very cleverly thought out and executed.
Danny Bayne has clearly perfected the accent from his days in Grease is the Word and brought the same confidence and swagger to the stage as he did in his performance as Danny Zuko.
The shining light of the whole performance for me was Cici Howells who was the club singer- she had a strong and sexy voice that suited the more bluesy interpretations of the seventies Bee Gees classics we have all come to adore. She looked simply dazzling in her silver jumpsuit and red wig.
Something which made a refreshing change was that the musicians were on stage- they played their instruments while mingling among the dancers in the background which provided a wonderfully eclectic backdrop during the club scenes.
The Saturday Night Fever soundtrack is the one of the biggest selling albums of all time and when you see this it is obvious why. All of the songs were given a reinvention and sometimes unrecognizable when they first started- however when they kicked in you come to appreciate the potential that each one of them has.
My only caution with the show is that it contains adult themes and fruitful language, so ensure any young adults you bring along are familiar with such content. Robert Stigwood, who is in charge of stage adaptation, did once say in an interview with The Inside Story on Saturday Night Fever, about the PG version; "It doesn't have the power, or the impact, of the original, R-rated edition." I do agree with this, as it is in keeping with the tone of the film it is inspired by; however I feel it's in parent's interests to know before booking the tickets.
This production is exciting, risqué and colorful- anyone who enjoyed the film or like me if you have not seen the movie before and want to enjoy it for the first time should go and see it. This is a real winner to get you all hyped up for your Christmas party.
Quote source: Wikipedia.
Tagged in Liverpool Empire Theatre