Brighton Fringe 2015
Point and Shoot
Holland Street Productions
Genre: Musical Theatre
Venue: The Warren
Festival: Brighton Fringe
Review
Point and Shoot is an Australian musical set in 2042 satirising big Hollywood movies. As the title suggests it is about making a movie. In 2042 the Hollywood Studios have all been bankrupted by putting on bigger and more expensive blockbusters and famous actors from today are seen with begging bowls. The Art House Films have taken over as a rejection of Hollywood & are determined not to let the blockbusters return.
One screenwriter wants to make a good film & one day, in through the door walks a dizzy young lady who has been left the rights to a TV Sitcom made in 1961 by her grandfather (or father – I can’t quite remember) which was a flop. She is determined that the sitcom of which we see scenes on a screen at the back of the stage, is resurrected. The screen writer is overjoyed to find a subject and the girl signs over the rights. There then follows a fairly convoluted plot with the Art House Films trying to stop the film being made and the screen writer slowly, to dizzy girl’s consternation, changing, bit by bit, the simple sitcom into a blockbuster film.
The film gets shot in retrograde fashion looking very 1960s. A few others get shot too. It is all very silly. The four actors, Erin Hutchinson, Tyler Jacob Jones, Tamara Woolrych and Robert Woods play over 50 parts, speedily going from one costume change to another and play a number of instruments between them. In one song ‘Change’ they all take it in turns in playing the flute and passing it on to the next actor. There are 3 electric pianos on stage with the actors rushing from one to another to play them. The book and lyrics were by Tyler Jacob Jones and the music by Robert Woods so it seems to have been a very collaborative piece.
The film sequences of the original Selma sitcom look good but I feel go on a bit long. I also found the music a bit repetitive.However, the actors play all the parts with gusto and are highly talented musicians. Point and Shoot is very well received by the audience and I think it will appeal more to that younger audience.
