Custard pies, gloop and splurge guns... it must be Bugsy Malone

Bugsy Malone, at the Oxford Playhouse, September 19-23, review by Jon Lewis and Hannah Lewis (aged 11)

Sean Holmes’ 2015 production of Alan Parker and Paul Williams’ musical Bugsy Malone, the show that opened the Lyric Hammersmith after its renovations, has been revived by Bath Theatre Royal productions, The Birmingham Rep and Kenny Wax for a UK tour. Its unique selling point is the genuinely youthful cast (there are three performers for each of the leading roles), but seasoned theatregoers will be drawn by the top notch creative team that Holmes gathered: choreographer Drew McOnie, designer Jon Bausor and Lighting designer Philip Gladwell.

As in the 1976 film, Bugsy Malone is a glamorous homage to the gangster movies and stage shows of the Jazz Age. The casualty lists are as high as any Cagney story, but blood and gore are replaced by custard pies and gloop, splurge rather than tommy guns used for the rub outs.

The plot is framed around a gang war between Fat Sam (Isham Sankoh), owner of a speakeasy, and a ruthless mobster, Dandy Dan (Kit Cranston), their outsize egos hilariously spoofing classic Hollywood films like White Heat. As one by one, Fat Sam’s goons are eradicated, Bugsy (Shaun Sharma) begins to juggle two glamorous singers, bandmember Tallulah (Fayth Ifil) and auditionee Blousey Brown (Delilah Bennett-Cardy). Both actresses are impressive, blessed with excellent voices. Blousey’s musical ambitions are matched by those of the cleaner, Fizzy (Eliot Arthur Magume) who steals the show with his rendition of Tomorrow. The big numbers such as So You Wanna Be a Boxer are real keepers, lively, hugely entertaining and stunningly choreographed.

Hannah writes: Bugsy Malone was outstanding. I loved how some of the actors were little children and other were older teens. Every person had a really good singing voice and the younger kids had a lot of lines and didn’t mess up. I loved the scene when Fat Sam had to move all of the set himself because there was no one else to move the set after everyone has been killed, and he was questioning everything that was there. My favourite character was Knuckles who was very funny because he cracked his knuckles even when his boss didn’t want him to. I would definitely recommend it.