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This star-studded celebration of Sir Cameron Mackintosh's thirty years as a producer, held over two nights last June at the Lyceum in the heart of London's theatreland was billed as "promising to be as uniquely memorable as the magical Les Misérables Tenth Anniversary Concert, and assembled over 200 of theatre's most talented performers in staged excerpts from some of the shows which Sir Cameron has produced over the years, starting with Salad Days which inspired his love of musical theatre at the age of eight.
With about sixteen sequences in all there was certainly something for everyone, from classic musicals like My Fair Lady and Carousel to the more modern blockbusters like Les Misérables and Cats for which Sir Cameron is probably best known.
The SHOW MEDLEY sequence was perhaps the most satisfying, containing as it did a spirited performance of 'One Two Three' from the not so well known modern musical The Fix by the very handsome and talented John Barrowman. Another favourite of mine (of which I have fond memories of the film version) was the wacky Little Shop of Horrors with the wonderful Ellen Greene singing appropriately enough 'Somewhere That's Green" One of the best performances of the evening was Bernadette Peters with a stunning rendition of 'Unexpected Song' from Andrew Lloyd Webber's Song & Dance. And my final favourite in this sequence, actually Six Guys with two numbers from Five Guys Named Moe who's classy performance made me extremely sorry I never saw this show.
STEPHEN SONDHEIM is a composer whom people seem to either love or loathe. Although my knowledge of his work is somewhat limited, I would nevertheless put myself in the first category, so the section of the show devoted to him was another of my special favourites. Both 'You've Gotta Have a Gimmick' from Gypsy featuring Ruthie Henshall, Julia McKenzie and Bernadette Peters, and 'You Could Drive a Person Crazy' from Company featuring Ruthie again together with Maria Friedman, Millicent Martin and Lea Salonga, were good examples of Sondheim at his wittiest and showed off the girls' talents to perfection. Dame Judi Dench gave her usual moving rendition of 'Send in the Clowns' from A Little Night Music and brought the house down. And finally my two favourite performances of the entire evening - Michael Ball with 'Losing my Mind' from Follies, and Bernadette Peters with 'Being Alive' from Company, both sung with incredible emotion.
I had to wait until almost the end of the show for the sequence I was most looking forward to - LES MISERABLES. I confess it was the real reason I was there, for with it came the chance once again to see Philip Quast who thrilled audiences worldwide in the Tenth Anniversary Concert. How disappointing then that he should treat us to only half of 'Stars', Javert's soliloquy from the first Act. Returning at the end of the set for 'One Day More', his all too brief appearance was still a marvellous experience for those of us who only "discovered" Philip in the video of the 1995 concert and have never been lucky enough to see him play Javert on stage. The rapturous applause which followed 'Stars' is a sure indication of how much he is appreciated.
And so the concert drew to a close, with the whole Company joining in the Finale of Sondheim's 'Old Friends'. A magical experience which will long be remembered by those of us lucky enough to attend.
