Hot Lips and Cold War bills itself as a sophisticated musical play set in
the White House during the 1960s. It tells the story of a young Irish woman
named Maria who steals money from a church collection box to pay for passage to
America so she can be with her apathetic beau Davey, who works in the White
House. Once she arrives, she is recruited by Jackie Kennedy to spy on her
husband during his secret rendezvous with Marilyn Monroe. Maria quickly
befriends Marvin, a black man who works as a groundskeeper but dreams of being a
preacher, but things go sour when an influential prejudice southerner arrives in
Washington and accuses Marvin of a crime he didn't commit.
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| Photo credit - Jamie Scott-Smith |
It's clear what writer Lizzie Freeborn is aiming to do with Hot Lips and
Cold War, as she draws comparisons to the scandals of the 60s and America's
current turbulent political climate. However, for all its apt commentary on abuses
of power in relation to race and gender, it never quite packs the punch it feels like it should. Right from the beginning, Hot Lips and Cold War is a jumble of
themes and ideas, some interesting, others clichéd, and a few downright
unbelievable.
Despite the somewhat patchy story, the cast is game and energetic, and
attempts at impersonations of real life historical figures are, for the most part,
impressive. In particular, Freya Tilly as Marilyn Monroe makes a clear
distinction between the public Marilyn, who slinks around flashing a fake
smile, and the private Marilyn, whose life was much more complicated than her
public persona ever let on. She gives a memorable performance of Marilyn’s
infamous Happy Birthday Mister President, and it’s a shame that the story seems
uninterested in giving Marilyn much to do aside from pop up now and then to seduce
JFK and torment his wife. One unusual moment even sees Marilyn emerging from a
secret tunnel in the White House grounds, greeting some staff members and then
stalking off to find her lover – an unusual narrative choice which calls into
question why Jackie needs photographic evidence of the affair, when literally
everyone seems to know about it anyway.
Sylvie Briggs fairs a little better. With her gorgeously crisp
singing voice, she sells Maria as a determined yet morally conflicted
individual, and even manages to squeeze some romance out of her love interests
(her relationships with both Davey and Marvin feel underdeveloped, which is a real shame given that Adam
Small has previously proven himself a worthy leading man in the brilliant new
musical Paper Hearts, and Jamal Franklin is charismatic and likeable in his scenes). Lewis
Rae is also entertaining as Kenny O'Donnell, one of JFK's closest aids and
friends. It’s a role which could have melted into the background, but Rae makes the most of every moment he’s on stage.
Ashley Knight gives an equally committed if slightly over the top
performance as Jerome Kingsley, the villain of the story. Understandably, at
times he seems a little uncomfortable, as his role straddles the borders between panto
villain and racist Yosemite Sam impersonator who isn't afraid to say the 'N'
word. Twice. (It may be a historically accurate word for a deplorable racist to
have said 50 years ago, but even in context it’s a jarring and uncomfortable thing to hear today in a piece of theatre written and performed by 2 white creatives). On a positive note, he does have a rather jaunty musical number, about how the Southern
states will not remain loyal to the president if he continues to support
integration.
Hot Lips and Cold War identifies as a musical play, but there are more than
enough musical numbers to categorise it as a musical instead. Freeborn’s songs
capture the sound of 60s lounge music well, but the score could perhaps do with
a few more stand out numbers. A special mention though must go to the production's musicians, under the musical direction of Oli Rew, who keep the show
ticking along nicely.
Although in its current iteration Hot Lips and Cold War feels, at times,
incoherent and inconsequential, it is far from lost cause. Freeborn’s ambitious
storytelling is certainly timely, and astutely identifies the ways in which
history repeats itself. The time period is an attractive one, aesthetically,
which is reflected in the beautiful
costumes by Hal and Ruthie Theatrical Design. It’s also a rough time period politically and socially, and is full
of interesting stories which deserve to be told. The production's presentation at London
Theatre Workshop will surely allow the creative team to assess what works and
what does not, and further workshopping will undoubtedly produce a more slimlined and sophisticated result.
