Funny Girl

Caroline O'Connor channels Barbra Streisand's immortal portrayal of Fanny Brice in The Production Company's 2016 opening season. Brice, a real life Ziegfeld Follies comedian and actress whose life spanned across some of the most fascinating periods of American theatre history before and after WWI, and had an equally colourful personal life. The musical loosely focuses on the birth of her career and trajectory of her relationship with 'gorgeous' Nicky Arnstein, a suave gambler.

O'Connor definitely possesses the vocal chops to bring the house down with her rendition of the vulnerable People and the defiant Don't Rain On My Parade. And she admirably tackles the physically demanding choreography in her stride. Critical to the role of Brice is a tongue-in-cheek, rapid-fire comic wittiness — something which O'Connor sometimes walks a tightrope at in her delivery.  They are either so sharp or so rapid that the audience misses most of them. But despite her fine form, there is no denying that certain scenes test our imagination of O'Connor as 19-year-old Brice. Her voice also lacks the sweetness and rounded body of youthful ingenue that made Streisand's portrayal so endearing. David Hobson as Arnstein delivers a powerful turn at the end, but is otherwise only required to look devastatingly handsome and charming.

Director Gale Edwards dazzles us with nostalgia through period detail galore in costumes, the choreography of dancers descending the twin staircases, and opulent props.