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Bit parts: Garry Starr Performs Everything @swkplay

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Garry Starr Performs Everything is a bare-bones (and bare buttocks) tribute to the theatre. Theatre may be in trouble, and audiences are down, but Garry Starr aims to save the theatre and bring back to the masses every style of theatre possible. As long as each style involves wearing a transparent white leotard or a skimpy thong. And tassels. It's part comedy, part physical comedy and part perv at Gary's physical prowess. The sentiment "if you've got it, flaunt it" applies here. So here we are with a show that has been around for some years and is having its first proper London run at the Southwark Playhouse (Borough) through Christmas. The premise is that Garry Starr (played by Damien Warren-Smith) has left the Royal Shakespeare Company over artistic differences. He is now on a mission to save the theatre from misrepresentation and worthy interpretations by doing things such as a two-minute Hamlet, recreating scenes from a Pinter play using unsuspecting audience

Movies: The Producers and the King

Tonight I caught the movie of The Producers as the weather is great for seeing a few films at the moment… As for the film, it isn't bad although I think Will Ferrell can neither act nor sing and Uma Thurman can neither sing nor dance (nor does she have the big tits required for the role). In a way it is amazing how little talent movie and television stars need nowadays. Unfortunately for Will and Uma the need to sing, dance, act and be funny in this movie does not make them look so good…

Anyway the movie is pretty much the same as the show and the original 1968 film. Some scenes seem to be lifted straight from 1968, including the way they were shot which seemed either homage to the original movie or the movie musicals of the 1950s. Whatever the inspiration it looked great (not sure about Broderick's hair colour however).

Pity about the cutting of "The King of Broadway" number however. Apart from being funny, if it were included it might have prepared the audience for the onslaught of broad acting and humour that seems to be what has bugged most people about the film. Then again the length of the film bugs people as well. King Kong is three hours but the gorilla doesn't sing.

Incidentally as the Musical is still playing on the West End there was an ad reminding everyone that they do it eight times a week at the Theatre Royal. Sure Nathan Lane isn't in it, but one suspects that the West End cast are happier that that's the case…

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