Shaw Festival: Anything Goes | Music and lyrics by Cole Porter/ Original book by P.G. Wodehouse & Guy Bolton and Howard Lindsay & Russel Crouse; New book by Timothy Crouse & John Weidman; Directed and choreographed by Kimberley Rampersad; Music direction by Paul Sportelli, with David Adams (Ship’s Captain); Matt Alfano (Spit/Luke); Mary Antonini (Reno Sweeney); Alexander Batycki (Swing); Jason Cadieux (Ensemble); Celeste Catena (Hope Harcourt). Festival Theatre, August 21. Continues until October 3, 2025. Tickets here.
It is late August, and most summer music festivals in Ontario have come and gone, but the Shaw Festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake is still alive with spectacular shows until October.
Anything Goes is one of the most iconic musicals in American theatre. First staged in 1934, it has gone through a number of revisions, with the current version rewritten in 1987.
Cole Porter is the genius who wrote both the infectious tunes along with a libretto that is packed with cheeky one-liners, clever wordplay, and satirical jabs that reflect his signature wit and the screwball comedy style of the 1930s.
The Story
Set aboard the S.S. American on its ocean crossing from New York to London, the story centres around its passengers — nightclub singer Reno Sweeney, Wall Street broker Billy Crocker, gangster Moonface Martin, debutante Hope Harcourt and her wealthy fiancé Lord Evelyn Oakleigh.
The convoluted plot involves mistaken identities, high-seas hijinks and a love quadrangle. Reno is in love with Billy, who is in love with Hope. Although Hope has feelings for Billy, she feels obliged to marry Lord Evelyn to save her family’s fortune. In turn, Evelyn — with some manipulation by Moonface and his accomplices — falls in love with Reno.
It’s a full circle of all’s well that ends well.
The Cast
This strength of this Shaw production is no doubt the cast. Not only are they excellent singers and actors, they need to be even more superb dancers.
Reno is aptly portrayed with fierce confidence by Mary Antonini, whose agile voice is smoky in the low range to sultry in the top, and who commands the stage with her every appearance.
Jeff Irving’s buttery tenor and matching good looks makes him the perfect Billy, the forelorn lover and stowaway who briefly basks in the glory of being mistakenly identified as Public Enemy Number One.
The cunning yet charismatic character of Moonface is endearingly-played by Michael Therriault, who nails every humorous line and move with precise timing.
Although Celeste Catena (Hope) has a smaller part, she catches attention as a strong and mighty operatic soprano with a lovely vibrato.
Allan Louis initially feels miscast as Evelyn, but he wins me over when he dials things up with an animated rendition of “The Gypsy in Me.”
There are all-round solid performances from the supporting characters: David Adams (Captain), Sharry Flett (Evangeline Harcourt, Hope’s mother) and Shawn Wright (Elisha Whitney, Billy’s boss). Kristi Frank, who plays Moonface’s brassy moll Erma, shines in her solo “Buddie, Beware.”
The remaining immensely talented ensemble of Reno’s Angels and sailors all dazzle with their singing and dancing chops.
The Production
This production is a visually-appealing spectacle, from the clever revolving set to the opulent costumes, all designed by Cory Sincennes.
Director Kimberley Rampersad is also the brainchild behind the brilliant choreography, which includes the sensational six-minute tap dance routine at the end of Act I that had audience leaping to their feet. She somehow gets the singers to do insane acrobatics too, running up the stairs and sliding down the banister as they sing.
Despite the music and story being set in a bygone era, this production manages to stay fresh. Mixed in are some modern references, like Machine Gun Kelly, but I think they were lost on the audience. But the music of Cole Porter is timeless, and recognizable numbers like “You’re The Top”, “I Get a Kick Out of You”, “Anything Goes” and “Blow, Gabriel, Blow” never go out of style.
Don’t over-analyze the flimsy plot, just enjoy the catchy tunes and the jaw-dropping dance spectacle, and you’re in for a boatload of fun and a bon voygage.
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