It is rare, indeed, for me to utter the phrase "Thank heavens for Pola Negri!" in this day and age.
However, that lady - or at least an artful approximation of her - was one of the (many) highlights of the brand new musical we went to see last night, The Tailor-Made Man. An interesting premise, a musical set in the 1930s world of one of our favourite influential gay characters from the early days of Hollywood Mr William "Billy" Haines, that relates the poignant story of his rebellious resistance to the "norms" of the day in favour of his true nature and his one true love Jimmy Shields.
I have, of course, written of this remarkable love story before - see the entry about Billy and Jimmy in the Dolores Delargo Towers Museum of Camp back in 2011.
So how would a musical based upon the rise and fall and rise again of an obscure gay matinee idol fare? Rather well, we thought! Despite what were obviously a few early-run glitches (this was after all only its third preview performance) such as stumbled lines and slight scenery mishaps - the lead actor being clonked on the head with a back-drop was unfortunate - it has all the makings of a West End success. Even the matinee performance we went to see had an almost full house, and an appreciative one at that.
The vocal skills of the assembled company are magnificent: leads Dylan Turner (as Billy) and Bradley Clarkson (as Jimmy) harmonise beautifully, ex-Steps singer Faye Tozer (as Billy's friend and William Randolph Hearst's mistress Marion Davies) does a powerful and convincingly vampish turn, Michael Cotton as the lovelorn Victor displays his artistic and emotional frustration magnificently, and (former stalwart of Channel 4's Whose Line Is It Anyway?) Mike McShane in spite of obvious nerves surprised us all as the domineering Louis B Mayer.
The remarkable and multi-talented players hold the whole thing together with the kind of energy one only ever really sees in a small cast - one minute kicking up a storm as the chorus, next thing playing society party vamps, gossips or back-lot Machiavellians, or else playing the reporter (Lauren Grant) interviewing the older reminiscing Jimmy (Clive Ward), or, in the case of Kay Murphy, portraying the most magnificently camp Pola Negri (the remarkably odd choice by Mr Mayer of a "lavender beard" wife, turned down by Mr Haines).
Adapted by Amy Rosenthal from Claudio Macor's original 1992 drama, the dialogue can on occasion be a bit, well, obvious in its insistence that the audience understand the true nature of Billy and Jimmy and their struggles against the system (studio and society) and, even giving a little leeway to nerves, some of the song-and-dance numbers may need a bit of polish - but nonetheless as a whole the production rises above all that to keep us toe-tappingly engrossed, and to really care about the characters.
When the narrative does get going, when the players are in full fettle, and especially in the best numbers in the show such as Louis B Mayer's Family, Marion Davies' Don't Trust Love, the recurring love duet We Got Time, Victor's This Love Of Yours and the show-stopper Design, this is a startlingly entertaining show.
We came away very impressed, and very pleased indeed to have seen it. I wish The Tailor-Made Man every success, and recommend it to anyone!
The Tailor-Made Man is at The Arts Theatre in Soho, to 6th April 2013.
