Big: The Musical

Those theatregoers who prefer their musicals to be old-fashioned and shamelessly fun, but are weary at the prospect of seeing some overexposed classic revived again, would do well to check out The Northern Light Theatre Company’s staging of Big, an Adelaide premiere production.

Based upon the popular 1988 film, which scored Tom Hanks the first of many Oscar nominations, this whimsical fable tells the story of a socially awkward tween named Josh (Jack Raft), who, in a pique of frustration after being denied entry onto a carnival ride for not being tall enough, expresses his wish to a fortune telling automaton that he could become “Big”. Josh then finds himself magically transformed overnight into a grown up (played by Charlie Smith) and forced to make his own way in a scary adult world for which he is woefully underprepared. Fortunately, a chance encounter with an eccentric tycoon, Mr McMillan (Angus Smith) lands him a dream job as the chief playtester for a toy company, where he attracts the romantic interest of jaded advertising executive, Susan (Kate Dempsey) who is drawn to his instinctive kindness and wide-eyed zest for life.

The show is loaded with disarmingly witty dialogue, and Weidman’s book maintains the film’s even balance of gently charming humour and grounded, unforced pathos. This musical adaptation also maintains the film’s late-80s setting, and costume designers Louise Watkins & Anne Humphries recreate the fashions of the period with strikingly colourful flair.

Shire & Maltby’s songs initially feel like something of an odd fit for this setting, as the jazzy inflections of many numbers sound more like something from the 1950s. Still, the score remains irrepressibly catchy and Emma Knights’ lively arrangements do a good job of selling the material.

Scene transitions are generally both swift and smooth, in large part due to David Gauci’s minimalist, but evocative set design, and the short downtime makes the cast’s consistently high energy levels during dance numbers doubly impressive.

Jack Raft and Charlie Smith resist the temptation to overact and wisely play the fantastical premise straight, which makes the more outlandish scenes all the more funny – their mannerisms are well matched, ensuring that each individual’s performance seems like a natural extension of the other’s. Kate Dempsey’s performance is an endearing mix of spunk and vulnerability, her tentative romance with Smith could easily have come across as creepy but they have a sweet chemistry which makes their inevitable parting all the more tearjerking to behold.

Angus Smith, Sandy Wandel (as Josh’s world-weary Mum) & Daniel Vickers (as Josh’s wisecracking schoolfriend Billy) effortlessly steal every scene they’re in provoking much hearty laughter from the opening night audience. The large chorus are a tightly co-ordinated assortment of triple-threats all. There were some odd microphone glitches during the first two numbers, which rendered the singing quieter than the background music, but hopefully this was a case of first night jitters and Northern Light will have got on top of this by the next performance. Because, these odd goofs aside, this amateur production would give most professional companies a run for their money.

Benjamin Orchard