One Touch of Venus (2000
Production)
Louise Gold starred as Venus, for the second time, in
a Lost Musicals production of One Touch of Venus, at The Royal Opera House's
Lindbury Studio Theatre, on 9, 10, 16 and 17 December 2000. She had played the
part eight years earlier at The Barbican Centre in a previous Lost Musicals production.
This page is about her later performance.
Louise was not the only player in the show who had been
in the earlier production. Myra Sands had played Mrs Flora Bell Kramer
in both the earlier Lost Musicals production, and a BBC Radio production
starring Paige O'Hara, while Delianne Forget had also been in the
earlier Lost Musicals version, as a Student.
This production was put on to mark Kurt Weill's
centenary. And, unusually for a Lost Musicals production, it also included The
Ballets, danced by members of The Central School of Ballet
The leading lady was supposed to be on holiday from
another show, but,
“Constitutionally averse to taking holidays,
Louise Gold is using a break from playing Tanya in the West End phenomenon
Mamma Mia, to bring one of Kurt Weill’s
“lost musicals” back to life” Robin Stringer, THE EVENING STANDARD,
December 2000
That lady’s own opinion of the show is
“It is very funny and very witty. There are
some lovely lines and it has a lovely score even though it is not that well
known.” Louise Gold to Robin Stringer, THE EVENING STANDARD, December
2000
Cast
Whitelaw Savory - Ethan Freeman
Molly Grant - Jessica Martin
Taxi Black - Kerry Shale
Stanley - Daniel Gillingwater
Rodney Hatch - Michael Cantwell
Venus - Louise Gold
Mrs Moats - Delianne Forget
Store Manager - Matthew Earnes
Sam - Dan Callaway
Mrs Kramer -
Gloria Kramer - Lori Haley Fox
Police Lieutenant - Michael Howell
Rose - Aileen Donohoe
Zuveti - Himself
Dr Rook - Dan Bates
Matron - Abigail Langham
And Dancers from The Central School of Ballet:
Genevieve de Camps, Madeliene Granville-Harris,
Nicola Ruth, Claire Meehan, Hikota Taira, Sarah
Reynolds, Ben Weeratunge, Poppy Ben-David, David Johnson,
Robin Gladwin, Benny Maslov, Denis Ruddock, Martin Bell
and principle dancers Yuiko Yoshide & Richard Winsor.
Production Team
Music - Kurt Weill
Lyrics -
Book -
Based on "The Tinted Venus" by F J Anstey
Original Production – 7 October 1943, The Imperial Theatre
Choreographer - Agnes de Mille
Reconstruction Choreographers - Antonio Castilla and Tim
Almass
Orchestra - The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor & Musical Director - Kevin Amos
Musical Director -
Director - Ian Marshall-Fisher
Some performances of the show overlapped with the show
Mamma
Mia, in which Louise Gold was playing Tanya, so she used her holiday
from Mamma Mia to appear in One Touch of Venus. She was not the
only Mamma Mia cast member in the show, Lori Haley Fox, who
played Gloria Kramer, was then appearing as a chorus member in Mamma Mia.
Actually, Lori Haley Fox has understudied all three of the Dynamo’s
including playing Tanya immediately before Louise Gold took on that
role. Louise Gold went on to devote her holiday time following year to
another Lost Musical Du Barry Was A Lady.
For a full review/account of the show,
please click here.
Louise Gold and Myra Sands had
previously played Venus and Mrs Kramer in the first Lost Musicals production in 1992.
Myra Sands and Dick Vosburgh
had previously played Mrs Kramer and Zuveti in the BBC Radio production
starring Paige O’Hara, which was first broadcast on BBC Radio 3 on 3
April 1995.
It is perhaps worth noting that ‘The Tinted
Venus’, the title of F J
Anstey’s book upon which this musical was based, was also the name given to
a statue of the goddess by Victorian sculptor John Gibson. It was the
first flesh-coloured statue of the time.
Louise Gold and Dick Vosburgh
had previously been Team-Captains on the BBC Radio quiz show Let’s Do The Show Right Here.
Louise Gold and Ethan Freeman
were both featured on the JAY/TER On The Town CD.
Louise Gold and Michael Cantwell
had previously: sung on the JAY/TER recording of Cabaret,
appeared together in Assassins, they went on to appear
in Mary Poppins, and as part of The
Company Of Mary Poppins in a late night FUNdraising special and along with Daniel
Gillingwater have appeared in Merrily
We Roll Along (Stage Production) and on that cast’s Merrily We Roll Along (Recording).
Louise Gold and Jessica Martin had
previously appeared together in The Lost Musicals production of Something
For The Boys, and on the radio in Let’s Do
The Show Right Here, and, Ned Sherrin’s
Review Of Revue. They also worked on Spitting
Image, and feature on the album Spit In Your
Ear .They have gone on to appear in such specials as: A Lost Musicals Occasion , and Dress Circle Grand Reopening.
Louise Gold, and Jessica Martin
also went on to appear in the Regents Park
70th Anniversary Gala which Abigail Langham may have
appeared in.
Myra Sands had previously appeared
with Louise Gold in The Lost Musicals productions: By Jupiter | One
Touch of Venus (1992 Production) | Du Barry Was A Lady (1993 Production) | New Girl In
Town | Red Hot And Blue | Something For The Boys | Panama Hattie | Gentlemen Prefer Blondes . They had
previously appeared in a concert of highlights from Ratepayers' Iolanthe
& Metropolitan Mikado , and have also appeared together on the
commercial stage in Follies
The Imperial Theatre in New York was also the
original venue for the Gershwin musicals Let ‘Em
Eat Cake (which Louise Gold appeared in a staging of on of BBC Radio
3) and Oh Kay (which Louise Gold starred in a
concert staging of at Barbican Cinema 1).
Kerry Shale had previously worked as
a voice-artiste on the film Labyrinth
Ethan Freeman’s recording credits also
include: The Best Of Broadway Musicals , Encore The Very Best From The
Musicals , Great Duets From The
Musicals, The
Greatest Musicals of the 20th Century, The History Of The Musical, and The Great Musicals - Wonderful Tales.
Kevin Amos had previously worked on Comedy Tonight.
Jessica Martin went on to
appear in A Love Letter To Dan.
Ethan Freeman’s recording
credits include The Great
Musicals – Dashing Heroes, Blushing Maidens, this also features The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
Critics Comments
“Louise
Gold’s Venus is a sensual art nouveau siren” Tim Ashley, THE GUARDIAN,
13 December 2000
“Last
but far from least, Louise Gold, who also starred as Venus in the 1992 Lost
Musicals production, was lusciously seductive, calling to mind the original
Broadway Venus, the incandescent Mary Martin, physically as well as vocally.
The Venus role is especially demanding, not only in the “Speak Low” solo but
also in the up-tempo swing number “I’m A Stranger Here Myself”. Thanks to
recordings of the original production, Martin’s virtuoso interpretation of
these two songs undoubtedly remains the historical standard. Yet Louise Gold
was a valiant successor to the legendary Martin and her delivery of these two
songs was impeccable.” Michael
Baumgartner, KURT WEILL NEWSLETTER, Volume 19, No1, Spring 2001.
“Gold sings Venus's songs superbly, while
Jessica Martin as Savory's wise-cracking secretary steals the show.” Mary Brennan, THE HERALD, 15 December 2000
“A very able cast and
the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra delivered at least three-quarters of
the goods, with Louise Gold, from Mamma Mia!, glamorous and intelligent as
Venus.” Ismene Brown, THE DAILY TELEGRAPH, 12 December 2000
“Louise Gold makes a fine and sharp Venus” Michael
Darvell, WHAT’S ON, 13-20 December 2000
“Except for a few moments of Ethel Merman
brass, Louise Gold's voice lives up to her name, and is equalled by a
combination of majestic poise and spontaneous sense of fun.” Rhonda
Koenig, THE INDEPENDENT, 13 December 2000
“Gold’s renditions of Weill classics, ‘I am a
stranger here myself’ and ‘Foolish Heart’ were a joy.” Denise Silvey,
MUSICAL STAGES, issue 28 April/May 2001
“Done
from the book without props, the acting doesn’t miss a beat. Louise Gold played
a wonderfully knowing Venus.” Robert
Thickness, THE TIMES/THE SUNDAY TIMES (LONDON), 15 Decmeber 2000
Links about One
Touch Of Venus
Review on The
Review by H.E. Elsom, from H.E.Elsom’s Opera
site. http://www.helsom.demon.co.uk/opera/2000/12_16_00_Venus.txt
Review from The Independent, by Rhoda Koenig:
http://www.independent.co.uk/story.jsp?story=49398
Review from The Guardian, by Tim Ashley: http://www.guardian.co.uk/reviews/story/0,3604,410747,00.html
Review from The Herald by Mary
Brennan: http://www.theherald.co.uk/arts/archive/15-12-19100-21-47-2.html
Review from The Daily Telegraph, by
Ismene Brown: http://www.lineone.net/telegraph/2000/12/12/arts/here_62.html
Mention in The Daily Telegraph, by
John Gross: http://www.line1.net/telegraph/2000/12/17/arts/idealism_20.html
Kurt Weill
Newsletter’s Review of the show: http://www.kwf.org/media/kwn191-3.pdf (includes a pictures of Louise – possibly
actually from the earlier 1992 production).
Return To Site Guide | Return
To Lost Musicals | One_Touch
of Venus 1992 producton | One Touch Of Venus, 2000
production review