Follies – a night of nostalgia, reflection, great music and brilliant performances (NI Opera at Grand Opera House until Saturday 20 September)

NI Opera’s production of Follies sees a welcome return to its post-Covid practice of staging musical theatre (using a mix of operatic and theatrical cast and voices) alongside traditional opera. Shows like The Threepenny Opera, Sweeney Todd and Kiss Me Kate thrilled audiences in the Lyric Theatre until the pandemic and funding reduced the company to one major production each year alongside its smaller events.

The curtain – distressed polythene the height of the stage – goes up and it’s 1971 in a variety theatre that’s about to be demolished to make way for a car park.

The impresario Dimitri Weismann (Marty Maguire) has arranged a reunion for the showgirls who performed in his ‘Follies’ shows in the years between the two world wars. The women reminisce about the olden, not always golden, days and face up to memories from their younger lives, things that happened, decisions they made, and old mistakes they have struggled to live with. In particular, Sally (Anna-Jane Casey) must confront her unrequited passion for Ben (Alasdair Harvey) – the lad who ultimately married her roommate Phyllis (Annette McLaughlin) in an unfulfilling union – and her own matrimonial shortcomings with Buddy (Mark Dugdale).

This version of Stephen Sondheim and James Goldman’s Follies has an enormous cast – cut down from the even larger 52 in the original 1971 production to a mere 32 it still exudes a sense of scale that can rarely be afforded – and suits the expansive Grand Opera House stage. Stripped of its plush curtains and elaborate sets, the wings are left bare, the black walls and pipework visible to all. Niall McKeever’s monochrome set is lit by Jake Wiltshire’s amber lighting design, with some large set pieces dropped in during the second half. A stunning mirrored globe sits stage left during the first few scenes, providing another perspective of the performers and lights for anyone sitting close enough to catch the detail. The moonlit cloud effect in I’m Still Here is a stunning backdrop to Jacqueline Dankworth’s solo as Carlotta.

Ten showgirls parade down the steps and onto the stage, introduced by Roscoe (Darren Franklin). Their sashes indicate the years they worked between 1918 and 1941. Portrayed as ‘women of a certain age’, these fictitious performers are unlikely to still be in demand for starring roles. But during the reunion, they each prove that they still have what it takes to put on a stunning performance. It’s part of Sondheim’s challenge to theatre makers and audiences.

Anna-Jane Casey is a powerhouse throughout, exploring Sally’s more-than-lingering love of Ben before realising the truth as her wellbeing unravels. Young Sally is played brilliantly by Brigid Shine who wows with vocals and acting that complement Casey’s mood and mannerisms.

Sally’s former flatmate Phyllis (married to the aforementioned Ben) is played by Annette McLaughlin who lets her hair down and hits peak sass in her later song The Story of Lucy and Jessie. Anna Violet’s incredibly confident performance as young Phyllis belies that this is her professional debut.

Sondheim’s vocal harmonies jump out from the score in songs like Waiting for the Girls Upstairs and are enriched with moments where the composer ratchets up the number of actors simultaneously singing against each other. It must be a nightmare to rehearse, but the finished result is a dream to listen to.

The ‘old timers’ stage a six-minute song and dance number Who’s That Woman? leaving the audience nearly as out of breath as the actors pretend to be, though some of the lyrics do soften a little during the superbly choreographed tap dance. It’s a mesmerising celebration of talent, and a delight to see Christina Nelson in the middle of the fray as Emily. Earlier in the show she enjoys a song and dance with Theodore/Richard Croxford, cleverly mirrored by their young selves at the back of the stage.

While Cameron Menzies’ direction plays with different ways of having old and young characters on stage together – sometimes in close proximity, other times acting out vignettes to one side – the overall effect is always clear.

With pheromones raging and a path to revived love uncovered, the show breaks at a crucial kiss. When it returns after the interval, the weeds quickly grow over smitten Sally’s dream of “puppy love at 53” as Ben makes his true nature clear. The somewhat noisy scene change during Could I Leave You? can be forgiven when Loveland is revealed and we enter a pink, flowery fantasy world of vaudeville acts as Sally, Phyllis and their spouses get to grips with their individual follies and desires. (Very reminiscent of the fever dream fantasy musical sequences Dennis Potter would create in his TV serials from the late 1970s until his death in 1994.)

One More Kiss matches the acclaimed voice of Lesley Garrett (playing Heidi Schiller and all but abandons her character’s Austrian spoken accent when singing) with young Petra Wells (NI Opera Chorus Development Programme) who more than holds her own in a fine duet.

A traditional opera would likely end with the protagonists at best in tears, at worst dead. A West End musical would see the young lovers reunited and driving off into the sunset. Sondheim and Goldman deliver something more complex yet still complete.

Follies offers the complete package of artists from across the worlds of musical theatre and opera demonstrating their vocal mastery of Sondheim’s lyrics and melodies, matched by the soaring music from NI Opera’s 30-strong orchestra in the pit under the baton of Greg Arrowsmith (the mellow sax during Sally’s Losing My Mind just one highlight from the evening), well-choreographed dance routines (Jennifer Rooney) that really help tell the story, as well as the dazzling costumes from Gillian Lennox and Cameron Menzies topped off with Nuala Campbell’s wigs.

Yet aside from all that creative prowess, one of the greatest highlights of this production of Follies is the visible on-stage chemistry between the older and younger versions of the characters. Core to NI Opera’s remit is the development of emerging local talent, and the generous nods from the Weismann showgirls towards their youthful ghosts during the curtain call suggests that the seasoned artists have been mentoring and valuing their younger colleagues. Women, young and old, are celebrated at the heart of this show.

Every couple of years I review a show that impels me to go back and watch it again before the run is over. Follies is one such production, with almost every other scene turning into a moment of great joy that demands to be experienced again. 

Follies runs at the Grand Opera House until Saturday 20 September. Tickets are selling very fast for the four remaining performances. Given the effort and imagination that has gone into this production, and the infrequency in which Follies can be staged, it seems a shame that there are unlikely to be other opportunities for this cast and version of the show – one of NI Opera’s best productions to date – to travel to other venues and wider audiences.

Photo credit: Neil Harrison

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