End Of The Rainbow @ The Trafalgar Studios - A Review

This evening we went to an amazing performance of "End to the Rainbow" at the Trafalgar Studios at the top of Whitehall.

This black comedy cum musical, which runs until March of next year, focuses on Judy Garland's time in London when she was staying at the Ritz during a five-week run of performances at the 'Talk Of The Town' venue in 1968. The star is portrayed perfectly by Tracie Bennett (the Olivier award-winning star of Hairspray) - she has the look, mannerisms and husky, breathy voice down perfectly. Make no mistake though - this isn't the fresh-faced star of The Wizard of Oz, this is the fragile, worn-out Judy, constantly swinging from amphetamines to booze and back again only a few short months from her death of a drug overdose.

That being said, although there are a whole series of harrowing and pitiful scenes set in her suite at the Ritz, where she alternately rages and sobs in the arms of her fifth husband-to-be, Mickey Deans (played capably by the rangy Stephen Hagan) there is also frequent laughter, usually spurred by her delicate pianist Anthony (Hilton McRae) making snide jabs at her stardom and reminding her of her icon status amongst the gay community. One hilarious scene, that had the audience literally crying with laughter, sees Judy disappear into the bathroom with a bag, only to reappear moments later to discover that she has just consumed a bottle of pills meant for Jonathan's dog - cue the actress barking, lifting her leg to pee on the furniture and, when the other actors show concern at what might happen, suggesting that they summon a vet!

Where this performance gets even better is in the scenes where the hotel room fades into the background and suddenly Judy is out on the stage, backed by a six-piece band. This is where Tracie Bennett really gets the opportunity to shine - songs like 'You Made Me Love You' and 'The Man Who Got Away' are full of all the pain and yearning that characterised Judy Garland's London performances. We even get to hear a faithful recreation of her faltering attempt at 'Over The Rainbow'.

Tonight was absolutely unforgettable - a really glittering show worthy of the West End. If I have one minor, minor quibble, I think that the 'gay' jokes are ever so slightly overdone, but then I'm probably quite sensitive to these things! The show runs until March of next year so you have no excuse not to go and see it...

EDIT - an added bonus! I've managed to find a recording of 'The Man That Got Away' from the Talk of the Town shows. The audio quality isn't great, but stick it out because it gets very powerful towards the end. And yes, Tracie nails this on stage too!