Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Encores! revival of the joyous, old-fashioned ME AND MY GIRL is a sheer delight

• By drediman
• May 13, 2018
• No Comments

Christian Borle leads the Encores! revival of “Me and My Girl” at New York City Center.

This afternoon, I caught Encores! utterly delightful revival of L. Arthur Rose, Douglas Furber, and Noel Gay’s Me and My Girl at New York City Center. Warren Carlyle’s joyous, old-fashioned production marks the conclusion of Encores! 25th season (has it really been that long?), which began with a starry revival of the rarely-performed Hey, Look Me Over! and continued with an absolutely smashing Grand Hotel.

The revisal of Me and My Girl was a a big hit in the 1980s on both sides of the pond, and it’s this edition – with a retooled, pun-heavy book by Stephen Fry, with additional contributions by Mike Ockrent – that is being used for this brief Encores! run. The musical, which tells the story of a rags-to-riches story concerning a jolly cockney man who finds out that he’s truly an earl, is unapologetically fluffy stuff, and I wouldn’t want it any other way.

The show’s biggest asset is Mr. Gay’s deliciously tuneful score. Under the baton of music director Rob Berman, it sparkled from beginning to end. Songs such as the insistent, inescapably catchy Act One closer “The Lambeth Walk”, “Love Makes the World Go Round”, and the lovely title song were all gloriously delivered by The Encores! Orchestra.

The show made a star – and a Tony-winner – of Robert Lindsay in the central role of Bill Snibson. Stepping into his shoes for this run is the one of Broadway’s brightest leading men, Christian Borle. If you’re familiar with Mr. Borle’s previous musical comedy performances, you’ll know that he’s one of the the industry’s most gifted physical comedic actors. Although he utilizes the same bag of tricks that he’s used in his previous (memorable) turns, his Bill is nonetheless an inspired creation – daffy, lovable, and incredibly present.

The rest of the cast was equally sensational. West End favorite, honey-voiced Laura Michelle Kelly, was simply an ideal Sally Smith. Her affecting, straight-forward performance was the perfect counterpoint to Mr. Borle’s manic pyrotechnic display. The supporting cast – which includes the likes of Tony-winners Harriet Harris and Chuck Cooper, as well as pristine performances from Lisa O’Hare and Mark Evans – was impeccable.

Me and My Girl concludes its run tonight. Try to catch it, preferably with you mom, if you can!

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

ME AND MY GIRL
Off-Broadway, Musical
Encores! at New York City Center
2 hours, 15 minutes (with one intermission)
Through May 13