I had the privilege of seeing the Hampton and LEH production of “Crazy for You” last week on Thursday 18th of October.
Crazy for You, the “New Gershwin musical comedy”, is the classic tale of a boy, a girl and a theatre in need of salvation. With a fast-paced and light-hearted script by Ludwig, and a collection of the most beloved tunes of George and Ira Gershwin, including the day-dreamy Can’t be bothered now, the catchy, high-energy Slap that Bass, and the plainitive, romantic Someone to Watch over me, Crazy for You is a truly delightful homage to the beloved and optimistic musicals of the 1930s: a world of showgirls and cowboys, in which a city boy and a country girl reconcile their differences, fall in love and save a theatre.
Bobby Child is played by sixth former Matt Mundy, whose performance was outstanding in my opinion. In a bid to impress Polly – played by the star of the show for me, Anastasia Hotchin – Child pretends to be theatre promoter Bela Zangler. But the real Bela Zangler is played by Fred Spence and there is a very clever scene early in the second half when Child and Zangler are together, dressed identically and humourously believing to be each other. It is a polished performance from both Mundy and Spence which went down well with the Hammond Theatre audience.
I went into this play expecting it to be the highlight of the school year, and it did not disappoint. What I found particularly impressive was the attention to detail that was in every dance number. Head Choreographer, Mrs Tate, did a spectacular job of making the dance routines perfect. “Their talent, enthusiasm and commitment has been absolutely outstanding. As always, I have demanded a great deal of energy and effort from them all and they have risen to the challenges that have been set”
But what really stole the show for me was the spectacular ball-room-like dance that was performed by Matt and Anatatasia (Bobby and Polly). It was a truly magical moment, the audience were so silent you could hear a pin drop. Matt Mundy’s performance as a whole I think summed up the play - brilliantly comedic at times but also showing superb talent at both singing and dancing.
For anyone wanting to have a laugh and feel the buzz of the theatre, I would fully recommend seeing this high energy musical. Tickets are currently on sale at the Novello Theatre in London.
