An Officer and a Gentleman ✈️

#PRInvite #Gifted | An Officer and a Gentleman has taken the hearts of many over the past 40 years following such a successful film release. Now, it embarks on a UK tour in a new musical.

Star rating: ★★★★★

An Officer and a Gentleman - a title which was a great success when it first released in cinemas - has made hearts soar since 1982. The film, the third-highest grossing film of that year, was later reimagined for the stage in Sydney, Silkeborg and planned a North American tour with some success. Most recently, though, the show has been revived for a UK tour which landed at His Majesty’s Theatre last night. The fighter pilots are ready to transport Aberdeen audiences back to the eighties this week with some throwback songs and a timeless story.

This classic title follows the plot of the original film closely. Though, I was definitely one of the few in the audience last night who was unfamiliar with the film which features Richard Gere and Debra Winger. Opening at the Aviation Officer Candidate School (AOCS), we meet Zack Mayo who wishes to train as a Navy jet pilot. Training here is rigorous, with a no-nonsense instructor who is an expert in fault finding - weeding the weakest of the recruits out early. Zack forms a friendship with Sid Worley and the pair explore the culture of Florida - navigating the drinking and dating scene whilst training at Pensacola, as well as partaking in some dodgy dealings. Whilst you may expect a traditional rom-com styled show, the second half explores dark themes where the audience learn the backstories to Zack and Sid in particular, with references to mental health struggles, addition and suicide. The plot of the show is strengthened by the theme of female empowerment - a welcomed motif considering this could easily be a male heavy show.

An Officer and a Gentleman is a jukebox musical, containing hits from the eighties. At first, this felt a little bit like the Amazon Original Cinderella starring Camila Cabello - just with better singing! The difference with this jukebox musical is that the story existed before the hit songs were added - not like other musicals of this genre such as Mamma Mia! or & Juliet - which at first felt superficial. However, as the show progresses, it really falls into its own. George Dyer supervises the music and orchestrations - and the cast’s vocals are a force to be reckoned with. The score features songs such as ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’, ‘Livin’ on a Prayer’ and ‘Heart of Glass’. In this ‘Man’s World’ of a show, it would be nothing without a woman or a girl, with the female singers are outstanding. It’s refreshing hearing songs which characterised the 80s sang differently, with new notations and riffs. The book is written by Sharleen Cooper Cohen and it seems to feature all of the notable references to the film - and even if these flew over my head, the script can be enjoyed by those who know the film, and those who don’t.

I didn’t even need to open my programme to figure out who was behind the creative team of this show, as the direction is so distinctly Nikolai Foster. Foster’s productions have recently been impressing Aberdeen audiences with reconfigured productions of Grease and The Wizard of Oz arriving here before summer. The direction is gritty, testosterone-fuelled, and captivating despite being very minimalistic. Foster’s vision for the show is embodied by Michael Taylor’s set and costume design which cleverly takes the story between the training facilities, bars, the factory and beyond with just a few additional trucks. The set is very stripped back, rather exposed, with three metal fixtures which frame the stage which create an extremely industrial and rusty feel for the show. Without the lighting design, the set would not work, and Ben Cracknell explores with LED floor strips and neon-style signs which elevate visual appeal of the show, with some black-box techniques rarely seen in commercial touring theatre.

Joanna Goodwin’s choreography is effective and compliments the direction with fluidity. The material of the show allows Goodwin to strike a balance between ensemble dance and movement, with the more discreetly choreographed routines stealing the show. Each number is slick, bar some of the sequences that take place in the training facilities. This would be effective if a deliberate choice to aid storytelling - but could be cleaned up by the company’s Dance Captain if not. I’ll assume it’s not the latter.

Wearing the white uniform is Luke Baker as Zack Mayo. Baker’s performance was mettlesome with some stand-out vocals too. The Gentleman to his Officer is Paul French as Sid Worley who has the saddest character arc of the show. Though not a fault of the actors’ chemistry, the musical adaptation distracted the audience from the deep friendship Zack and Sid have in the film and this had consequences at the end of the plot.

Georgina Lennon plays Paula Pokrifki and excels during her solo ‘Alone’. Vocalist of the night, though, was Sinead Long as Lynette Pomeroy. Pomeroy has a distinct and unique vocal quality and I personally loved her renditions on her character’s material. Olivia Foster-Browne was excellent as Casey Seegar, flying the flag for female pilots, with equally impressive vocals. Melanie Masson and Wendi Harriott were also great in their roles of Esther Pokrifki and Aunt Bunny respectively - sprinkling some humour in amongst some dark tones.

An Officer and a Gentleman runs at His Majesty’s Theatre, Aberdeen, until Saturday 12th October. Though I am not completely convinced about its merit as a musical, it makes for a nostalgic night out which had audiences swaying along to its recognisable tunes and sometimes even making air punches! The show has the power to breathe new life into the title and appeal to a new generation - where many can either reminisce over or discover this story of love, courage and redemption. Where Act 1 takes a while to get to its feet, Act 2 is dense with emotion, featuring a gut-punching finale equipped with that iconic lift… and not the Dirty Dancing one!

Credits

Instagram links: @theatregramuk, @aberdeenperformingarts, @officergentuk

Review by Joel Simpson cc: theatregram@gmail.com

Production photos supplied by Aberdeen Performing Arts