Like it’s source material, Legally Blonde tells the fluffy story of Elle Woods (Lucy Durack), a privileged platinum blonde, Chihuahua cuddling, fashion merchandising major from Malibu who takes on the button-down law establishment of Harvard University whilst on a journey of self-discovery and acceptance. After being unceremoniously dumped by her part-time model boyfriend Warner (Rob Mills), Elle comes to realise that she has a lot more to offer the world than materialistic fashion advice and hair maintenance tips. Unlike other stories of this ilk, Legally Blonde doesn’t condone changing your personality to succeed (like Sandy in Grease for example); Elle uses her skills and passions to carve out a place for herself in the cutthroat world of law.
Broadway director Jerry Mitchell has created a fast-paced, slick and deliriously colourful production that bursts with energy, humour and a big heart. Songwriting partners Laurence O’Keefe and Nell Benjamin, who previously collaborated on the wonderful Bat Boy, have created an instantly likeable score full of smashing songs. They nail the tone of the piece and the world these characters inhabit from the opening number ‘Omigod You Guys,’ in which the sorority girls of Delta Nu gossip about Elle’s upcoming engagement. Against a synth heavy drum pounding backbeat the girls deliver hilarious one-liners, such as “They’re just like that couple from ‘Titanic’/Only no one dies…” to hilarious effect. O’Keefe and Benjamin also handle the more dramatic character based songs well; the title tune towards the end of act two is a moving ballad which perfectly captures Elle’s internal struggle. Legally Blonde has one of the strongest pop based music theatre scores I’ve heard in a long time.
Like the green witch Elphaba from recent blockbuster Wicked, the role of Elle Woods is a mammoth undertaking for any performer. Lucy Durack played the other witch, Glinda, in that aforementioned show a few years ago and now she truly takes centre stage in Legally Blonde. Durack presents Elle as a bubbly, hyperactive and sweet young woman who is strong-willed and understanding of the others around her. She acts the part very well and creates a nuanced character, but unfortunately Durack’s vocals never reach the heights of the rest of her performance. Elle’s big numbers, such as the monumental act one closer ‘So Much Better,’ are successful but other moments fall vocally flat, the end of ‘Positive’ is one example, and Durack has a tendency to strangle certain notes.
Rob Mills is perfectly cast as the superficial and smarmy Warner and his singing style suits his characters brief songs brilliantly. In a rather bland role David Harris plays Elle’s new love interest Emmett with a natural likability and his powerful tenor sounds fantastic. The strongest of the leads is Helen Dallimore as unlucky in love hairdresser Paulette. Sporting a spot-on Boston accent Dallimore owns the stage in virtually every scene she’s in. She also displays some powerhouse vocals, particularly during the quirky song ‘Ireland.’ Cameron Daddo portrays Professor Callahan with the right mixture of suavity and sleaze, whilst Erika Heynatz literally takes your breath away as exercise goddess Brooke Wyndham. Act two opener ‘Whipped Into Shape’ highlights her incredible dance ability (and body!) but Heynatz also gets to flex her acting and singing muscles in the role and she succeeds admirably.
The ensemble cast of Legally Blonde carries the show. Their energy and talent spills over the footlights and each member is given the chance to shine. Elle’s sorority sisters Margot (Shaye Hopkins), Serena (Ashlea Pyke) and Pilar (Chloe Zuel) light up the stage every time they appear, usually popping up through the stage floor to act as Elle’s own personal Greek chorus. Ed Gray almost steals the show as Kiki, Paulette’s hairdressing assistant, and Elenoa Rokobaro had me in stitches as the judge towards the end of the show. In fact my face hurt from smiling so much during the last ten minutes of Legally Blonde and this was largely due to the dedicated work of the ensemble.
This show fits the stage of the Princess Theatre like a pink sequined glove. David Rockwell’s sets and Jerry Mitchell’s choreography have been scaled down form their original Broadway incarnations (this production is based on the recently revised London version), however this new staging works splendidly in creating the seamless pace of the show. Gregg Barnes’ costumes suit the style of the piece well, using slightly exaggerated colour saturated versions of contemporary fashion, and Kellie Dickerson’s small but accomplished orchestra plays the peppy score admirably.
Legally Blonde works because the creators of the show, particularly book writer Heather Hach, have taken the rather bare bones of the original screenplay and fleshed out the characters and action to work on the musical stage. In the process they have created a modern music theatre hit with the perfect combination of wit, laughs, glitzy camp and Broadway gloss. If you can’t enjoy this show you must be a member of the walking dead.4 STARS
