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They’re Playing Our Song

Published Tuesday 5 August 2008 at 11:25 by Mark Shenton

The public (or at least those who watch Saturday night primetime television), of course, chose Connie Fisher to star in The Sound of Music two years ago, but why has Connie now chosen to follow it with her first major role since that by starring in a revival of They’re Playing Our Song?

This autobiographically-based 1979 Broadway musical about the alternately coy and cloying on-off-and-on again relationship of a songwriting team has its composer Marvin Hamlisch represented by the character of vain, egotistical Vernon Gersh (Alistair McGowan, who physically seems to actually be channelling another composer, Jason Robert Brown) and lyricist Carole Bayer Sager covered by insecure, unreliable Sonia Walsk (Fisher).

But both actors are faced with the uphill struggle of bringing their personal charm to a pair of charmless characters, and the strain constantly shows. No wonder it’s hard for them to establish much rapport - their characters barely seem to have much of one. As a result, they have the impossible task of trying to bring a back story to a show that has no forward momentum, but is in serious danger of collapsing between the musical interludes.

At least Hamlisch gives them both some characteristically brisk, peppy songs - though lazily recycles most of them several times over - but if the revolve of Matthew Wright’s witty set keeps its floor representation of an old vinyl album turning, the record gets stuck as we return to the uninteresting progress of the relationship charted by Neil Simon’s book.

Still, even if bad accents and worse wigs further undermine the believability of their characters, nothing can suppress Fisher’s natural vivacity when she comes to her delightful delivery of those songs, and McGowan matches her in musical affability. Perhaps they should have just done a concert version.  

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