BWW Reviews: NOEL COWARD'S ACE OF CLUBS, Union Theatre, May 9 2014

Set in the same milieu as Fings Ain't Wot They Used T'Be, currently revived across the Thames in Stratford, Noel Coward's Ace of Clubs (at the Union Theatre until 31 May) delves into post-war London's netherworld of tarts with hearts, dodgy dealers and honest coppers and comes up with a entertaining evening. Like the Fings production I saw at this venue exactly three years ago , its cookie cutter characters and predictable plot are rescued by its fantastic songs and charming performances.

Pinkie (Emma Harris), singing in a dodgy Soho club, catches the eye of sailor boy Harry (Gary Wood) who is soon in a ruck with smalltime crook Smiling Joe Snyder (John Game), and a feud ensues. Meanwhile, a parcel intended for Snyder has gone missing, which puts Benny (Patrick Neyman) in trouble with club owner and lover Rita (Kate Milner-Evans) and the Old Bill (Jonathan Barnes). Will Harry win the heart of Pinkie? Will the parcel turn up? Will Rita whip Benny into line?

If the answers to those questions won't require all three guesses, the staging at the Union Theatre is more of a surprise. The space under the railway arches has been transformed into The Ace of Clubs itself, the audience sitting, a little cramped it has to be said, at tables, some even furnished with bottles of bubbly! Director Jack Thorpe-Baker uses "his club" to have a lot of fun with the chorus girls, one of whom (Louise Ann Close) can't quite count four beats or find the correct leg to kick, and with busty blonde Baby Belgrave (Lucy May Barker) whose first act closer, Would You Like To Stick A Pin In My Balloon?, is every bit as saucy as it sounds.

Coward's wit and gift for a tune shine from first to last, the standouts being the classic Sail Away sung beautifully, if a little softly, by Mr Wood and the hilarious Josephine, a skewering of Napoleon, splendidly delivered by Ms Harris. Gemma Hawkins' four piece band play the music with exactly the right jauntiness, giving us a particular treat as the whole cast belt out Coward's signature song, London Pride, at the curtain to send us out into the London night with a little more love for London.

It's easy to see why Ace of Clubs isn't one of The Master's most celebrated works, but it's a perfect match for this intimate space with a reputation for finding neglected musicals and reviving them for a new generation of London audiences to enjoy again. And this production is very enjoyable indeed!

Photo Roy Tan

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