Bar Mitzvah Boy (Upstairs at the Gatehouse)
Jule Styne, Don Black and Jack Rosenthal are all heavyweight theatre names. It’s surprising then that their 1978 musical Bar Mitzvah Boy never really took off. The adaptation of Rosenthal’s TV play ran for 77 performances at Her Majesty’s Theatre and is only just receiving its first London revival, here in a revised version with a book from David Thompson.
It’s the story of a 13 year-old boy from Willesden as he approaches his Bar Mitzvah. At its heart it’s a simple coming of age tale, which humorously caricatures the hustle and bustle of a big family event and the quiet reservations of the boy at its centre. It’s about a very Jewish ceremony, but it clearly has a lesson or two – about family values, love and taking a step back to consider what traditions actually mean – that is accessible to all. It’s a show with a very big heart.
Part of the problem with the book, is that very little actually happens. And what does happen is pretty predictable. The first half feels very stretched out and though Stewart Nicholls' production has a good pace, it ultimately feels padded. But there’s no doubting Styne and Black’s tunes, which occasionally introduce a klezmer sound. With the winning "This Time Tomorrow" and "The Sun Shines Out of Your Eyes" leading the pack, the songs are most definitely the best thing of the evening.
They are also sung by an excellent cast here, including the young lead Adam Bregman who is great as the bright, outspoken and slightly petulant Eliot Green. Sue Kelvin and Robert Maskell are also pitch perfect as Eliot’s distracted parents, so concerned with the event of the Bar Mitzvah, they haven’t thought to ask their boy how he’s feeling.
It’s an intimate staging, which, with a slightly sketchy set that hides part of the excellent live band behind an odd curtain at the back, feels a little rough around the edges. But the sheer joy of the music and the enthusiasm of the performers shine through.
Bar Mitzvah Boy runs Upstairs at the Gatehouse until 10 April and then at the Radlett Centre on 16 and 17 April.
