Annie Get Your Gun - 22 October 2009
Last night Whatsonstage.com theatregoers were treated to a classic revival at the Young Vic as the wild West came to London with Irving Berlin’s 1946 Broadway hit, Annie Get Your Gun. There was shooting, dancing, a chicken, a plethora of well known songs and four pianos to name but a few of the treats in last night’s truly entertaining performance.
This is a classic love story, the great hurdle to overcome being Annie Oakley’s abilty to shoot better than the man she loves, Frank Butler. It may not be the most politically correct story (Annie cannot win at shooting if she wants to win Frank) but the fantastic music and lyrics and the very heart of the piece allow you to enjoy this show for what it is, a wonderful piece of very entertaining theatre! Julian Ovenden plays Frank Butler with real panache and with his beautiful voice and fantastic costumeshe has us all the ladies wishing that they were Annie! Jane Horrocks plays a marvelous Annie Oakley. Her vocal range is astounding and her Annie is honest and engaging throughout.
This is a massively stripped down prodution with only four pianos and a fantastic ensemble cast who play a variety of roles showing amazing skill. The set design is impressive and a simple stage is by turns an inn, a train and a boat. After this enchanting show we were treated to a really entertaining Q&A attended by the Young Vic artisitc director David Lan, Julian Ovenden, Jane Horrocks and many of the other members of the cast as well which was a real treat! Edited highlights from this Q&A will appear on the news section of the site shortly so please check those out!
Please do feel free to email your comments and thoughts about the play, as well as any photos you have of the event and the evening through to feedback@whatsonstage.com, we love to hear from you.
Thanks for joining us for this event, and do check the homepage to keep up to date on all of our upcoming Outings.
Laura Norman
Club Manager