How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying - Wiltons

Thought I'd bump this as it's a very short run starting this weekend I nearly missed it

watching on the 19th! I really enjoyed Floyd Collins and love Wilton's as a venue.

The reviews i have read so far are not good.

2 stars from The Times too.
But what do critics know.....

Well there was a concert at the Royal Festival Hall a couple of years ago, starring Jonathan Groff and Cynthia Erivo. And it was revived on Broadway not long back too, with 3 consecutive big name leads (Daniel Radcliff, Darren Criss, Nick Jonas). I also recall a production with Scott Garnam and Nadim Namaan somewhere not long ago.

However I guess there's been nothing MAJOR in a long while over here (West End/ High profile fringe). As far as I'm aware.

I thought about going to see this as there are some great songs,but I'm afraid when I saw the Jonathan Groff concert I found it EXTREMELY longwhinded, which is putting me off.

Confused I am.

Hard to argue there's a musical better than Guys and Dolls. Love Frank Loesser and have wanted to see his other works for so long. Charley s Aunt at the Regent's Park Theatre was so enjoyable, Once in Love with Amy is irresistible. And after all this was only the 4th musical to win a Pulitzer Prize.

So why aren't I writing a glowing review? I wish I knew.

I know this piece pretty well. Saw the film years ago and have the Original Cast recording and yet the doubts were always there. There's some good material but...

So praise for this production which on minimal resources works well. Fast moving and stylish in London's most atmospheric space; what's not to love......

And the cast. Loved the women, Hannah Grover is delightful as the sassy but homely Rosemary (hard combination to pull off) with Geri Allen and Maisey Bawden also most impressive. And I enjoyed the male actors, no weak links. Everyone knew there parts and were well drilled. It looked good and (I'm struggling a little here).....

I wished I'd loved the band and arrangements more. A sensitive drummer and a horn based orchestra of 9 should have been right up my street. But...the overture left me cold and I missed things like the 'tap' sounds of the typewriter in A Secretary is Not a Toy (in fairness I think that came into its own in the film?).

Then there's the 'hero' of the piece. What a creep. Hardly surprising that “I believe in you” (by some way the 'great' song in the piece)came across less as a Hymn to Him and more a tribute to narcissism. I don’t know how you can sustain our interest in this part but neither did the director or the actor Marc Pickering. He was the best comedian on stage but...an impossible task? (its a problem in the film too).

I thought that some of the humour was under delivered and the participants came across as ciphers and cliché’s rather than rounded characters with an interesting perspective. Bit like the film really and I wonder if I'm somehow missing the point?

The show had a long run originally and Daniel Radcliffe recently made a success of it, so maybe it's possible to deliver it well. BUT I'm left thinking Loesser was a song writer and not a stage animal, He should never have taken this on. Even for Guys and Dolls he actually wrote a great no of songs for Runyon’s Characters and then left it to Abe Burrows to come up with a book and make it work.

Reading this back, I've been harsh. There’s much to enjoy but my hopes have been dashed and basically I don’t think its a great piece. Given the budget restrictions I think the team here have done really well but I 'm not surprised that they failed to produce a 'silk purse'.

Go see, but don’t expect to discover a neglected gem.

I was in a production of How To Succeed many years ago so the show has a special place in my heart. It has a wonderful score and great characters, but it has to be overplayed for it to work. It's very old fashioned and very chauvinistic. It's also a very long show.

Did Act 2 open with Cinderella, Darling or did they use the revised version of How To Succeed?

Yes it is satire, if it's played the right way.

Saw the mat today. Have to say i liked it! Small cast working overtime and it would have been nice to have a few more to populate the stage. Cast were apart from Andrew Wadsworth new to me. Marc Pickering in the lead was brilliant, fantastic comic timimg. Also like Hannah Grover. Shame it has such a short run. Superb eleven oclock number with Brotherhood of Man. 4 stars

It obviously depends where you sit sound-wise. I was in the middle of front row stalls and it was excellent.

I was also in the balcony last night and agree that the sightlines are really poor; comparable to the Sam Wannaker Playhouse or the Dorfman cheap seats.
I really liked this. It's too long but has some great numbers and, despite some minor sound issues, was well produced and acted (the actor playing Pierrepont was superb.