Arts Theatre, London – until 11 March. Reviewed by Claire Roderick
3***
The Small Faces’ final gig in 1968 frames Carol Harrison’s jukebox musical, with an older, but sadly not wiser Steve Marriot guiding the audience through the group’s rise to fame and their acrimonious split.
The rise to fame of the East End lads, their exploitation by original manager Don Arden and the creative freedom they found under Andrew Oldham’s hapless management are portrayed with energy and commitment, but this is a show with a split personality, veering from 1970’s style comedy to melodrama in the confused and meandering script. There are some great one-liners peppered about, but some jokes felt as if they should have been mothballed in the 1960s.
Chris Simmons as the older Marriot gives scathing unapologetic accounts of his youthful mistakes in the first act, strutting across the stage triumphantly as his younger self (Samuel Pope) and the band become successful. The second act feels more like a painful therapy session, with Marriot becoming more and more dishevelled and contrite as he watches himself implode and alienate everyone around him, eventually wandering around kissing people he hurt as his younger self is abusing them. The final scene feels like it comes from a completely different show, ending on an overdramatic downer before the obligatory jolly singalong finale. This is a shame, as writer/director Carol Harrison obviously has a huge passion for the story of this tragic man and his wonderful music, but as it is, the show is at least half an hour too long and needs more focus.
Obviously, the music is glorious, with Samuel Pope’s vocals soaring brilliantly in numbers like Itchycoo Park, Tin Soldier and All or Nothing, and the group’s (Stanton Wright as Ronnie Lane, Stefan Edwards as Kenny Jones, Alexander Gold as Ian McLagan) musicianship and chemistry is extraordinary. The comedy highlights are provided by Edward Elgood as original keyboard player Jimmy Winston and Daniel Beales with his memorable cameos as Stanley Unwin, Tony Blackburn and David Jacobs while Carol Harrison gives a gutsy performance as Marriot’s mum.
This is a show that can get away with the book’s weaknesses by riding on the huge wave of nostalgia, energy and joy that the music creates, and die-hard fans will have the time of their lives.