Gypsy: A Musical Fable: In conversation with Music Theatre Bristol

colour were represented in such a positive way. It was such a pivotal moment in my head that completely resonated with me. I saw a representation of myself and thought ‘Wow! I enjoyed that!’. The ember of passion grew into a bright ame over the years for Sayan.

Milan Perera catches up with Music Theatre

Bristol to discuss their recent production of Gypsy: A Musical Fable

Milan Perera

Arts Critic Columnist

It is undoubtedly the crowning jewel of American musical theatre. It became a benchmark role for music theatre performers. It was music theatre’s answer to King Lear, which captured the emotions dictating human existence. Gypsy is a tour de force from the rst downbeat to the nal curtain call, as the proceedings move at a breakneck pace, punctuated with some of the most memorable show tunes. Music Theatre Bristol (MTB) has not been shy when it comes to tackling musical theatre leviathans and Gypsy: A Musical Fable is no exception.

In the run up to the main event of their performance calendar, Epigram had the chance to catch up with the director Sam Sayan and the lead cast Abi Wander. When we met at the Beckford Cafe on a cold afternoon in December, Sam Sayan and Abi Wander were in the middle of an intense rehearsal session in the Senate House building.

Epigram managed to catch a eeting glimpse where a dedicated cast and crew have already spent good number of hours perfecting every facet of the production.

My rst question to the duo was a curt curveball: ‘In this day and age of Net ix and Spotify why should anyone care about musical theatre?’ To which Abi Wander provided a measured and composite answer where she elucidated that: ‘I know that it’s not everybody’s cup of tea, but for me as a music student I nd it magical. When you sit down and listen to an album, they’re all di erent and that’s great but when you sit down for a musical it all weaves together beautifully. There are motifs and moments that keep coming back and draws the story. It shows how music can tell a story in a special way. Musical theatre can mirror so many things which we experience in a clever way much like Shakespeare. For example, in Gypsy there are moments you could laugh or cry or feel angry. The whole spectacle is moving and uplifting.’

This was not the rst time Sam Sayan and Abi Wander joined forces in a major production. The 48-hour production of Heathers last summer where Sayan directed the proceedings and had Wander in the lead role garnered critical acclaim including a ve-star review.

Then we turned to their own musical journeys and shows which red their imagination. For Sam Sayan it was Rocky Horror Picture Show, which they saw as a ten-year-old in costume!

It seared on to them and made an inerasable imprint.

When I askedSayan what was special about the show, they commented that: ‘I’m gay and a person of colour. This is a show where I saw queerness and people of

Abi Wander’s natural air for singing was spotted at the age of seven years old by her deputy headmistress, who was a retired opera singer before turned to teaching. She received singing lessons and joined a myriad of choir groups including a semi-professional vocal ensemble.

She also joined various drama groups during her school days in London where she honed her stage craft. When I asked about her rst encounter with musical theatre, she said: ‘It’s probably going to be a boring answer. It was a performance of Wicked. I loved it so much and my love for the theatre grew from then on. Watching it for the rst time I thought ‘this is what I really want to do’. She burst out laughing and added ‘my musical taste has developed a little since then’.

When I turned their attention to the casting, both said almost in unison that they were under no illusion that the production is not some watershed moment in representation or diversity. What mattered according to them is at least attempting to cast actors based on their artistic merit irrespective of colour, sexuality or gender, bypassing the identity fea- tures of a character. Wander, who is proud of her Jewish heritage added that: ‘we operate in a student sphere and if we can’t at least try to achieve it in a space like ours, how could you expect the industry to be more inclusive and diverse?’ his infectiously catchy lyrics of West Side Story only two years prior to Gypsy. When Sondheim was asked of the secret recipe for his memorable lyrics in an episode of Desert Island Discs on the BBC, he broke down his ‘magic’ with a disarming candour and said he treated musical numbers as one-act plays infused with the corresponding mood and emotions.

Sam Sayan, who is an accomplished musical theatre performer in his own right, starred in the National Youth Music Theatre production of Ragtime where they portrayed Tateh, a Jewish immigrant travelling to America for a new life with his young daughter. The role required both empathy and nesse which Sayan had in spades.

As an actor, Sayan was fully aware of the intricacies and complexities of the roles assigned to cast members, but they rmly believed in sharing their creative vision for the project with the cast and drilling it down to a tee in rehearsals.

Gypsy: A Musical Fable (1959) is considered by many as the most complete musical theatre expression in the history of Broadway, which featured the skills of two advocates in the industry: the composer Jule Styne and the lyricist Stephen Sondheim. The latter was on a crest of creative prowess where he became a household name for

Gypsy recounts the tale of Gypsy Rose Lee, unarguably the most popular burlesque and striptease artist in history, and her mother Rose. Rose is the pinnacle of all stage mothers and a character whose complexities and challenges have been explored by a long line of theatre luminaries, including Angela Lansbury, Bernadette Peters, Patty LuPone and Imelda Staunton. Abi Wander relished the challenge and was determined put her own spin on this iconic character. According to Sam Sayan, the set design for Gypsy was both detailed and extravagant, capturing the opulence of Post-Depression America, which included a fully equipped kitchen, a dressing table, a large neon sign, pyro, smoke and a rotating piece of set.

Sayan was quick to point out that it was a huge collaborative e ort with some other SU groups and individuals such as Walter Hall of the Bristol Operatic Society, David Simkins of the Bristol Symphonia, Sustainable Fashion Society, Marketing Society, DramSoc and the Pole and Aerial Society. The latter had advised the cast with the terminology and the artistic nuances surrounding burlesque.

As they were about to resume the rehearsals, I took my leave after being enthralled by an engrossing conversation on musical theatre and performing arts. Gypsy: A Musical Fable ran from 1 Feb – 4 Feb at The Winston Theatre.