Interview

Stephen Mear

Stephen Mear is one of Britain's leading choreographers, whose work has contributed to the success of such recent hits as Mary Poppins and On The Town. Paul Webb caught up with him in Chichester...

What show are you working on now? "How To Succeed In Business, here in Chichester. Were just beginning tech week after several weeks of rehearsals..."

Technical rehearsals can be fairly stressful... "They can, but as a choreographer I find they can also be very helpful - there's a lot of stopping and starting, and that's when you can sort out various problems - people are around and you have a chance to talk to them and work on some of the scenes, so that's when a lot of ideas finally click."

When is the show running? "From May to September." What's your strongest point as a choreographer? "In terms of style, I'd say it was tap, but I'm also very good on patterns, and I like to see the patterns I've created in rehearsal working well on stage. In that sense I'm strongly influenced by Busby Berkeley, who choreographed so many Hollywood movies and created these amazing patterns of dancers on screen. During final rehearsals for Mary Poppins Matthew Bourne, my co-choreographer, would watch from the stalls, whereas I preferred watching from the dress circle - you see the patterns better from there."

Co-choreography on a West End show is fairly rare... "It is, but it was very helpful in creating Mary Poppins. People wondered how we would get on, and I think some of them thought we'd end up wrestling on the floor, but in fact we complemented each other very well. Though it's nice to have a musical all to myself again!"

I'm a big fan of the production of Anything Goes that you choreographed fro Trevor Nunn at the National and then at Drury Lane. In fact the first night at Drury Lane was one of the most exciting I've ever been too... "I know how you feel - it was a fabulous first night and a wonderful show. Working with Trevor Nunn was extraordinary - the man's a genius!"

Can you be more specific? "He was very keen that the choreography should be an integral part of telling the story rather than just illustrating the mood of any particular number. He was also very happy with my determination to have all the characters on stage dance rather than just stand around swaying to the music while the better dancers got on with it. And that added a great deal to the energy on stage, which then produced an infectious enthusiasm from the audience..."

You were in the previous London production of Anything Goes, at the Prince Edward? "Yes, I was in the chorus!"

So you worked with John Barrowman in both productions? "Yes, and though he was good at the Prince Edward, I thought he was fabulous at the National and then Drury Lane. His voice had matured and he gave a terrific performance - and he's great fun to work with."

You're also a fan of the dancer Anne Miller? "I am! I always loved watching old movies as a child, and that's where I first saw her. I got to meet her at tea at the Savoy hotel. She was working in Sugar Babies at the Savoy Theatre and Eartha Kitt, a mutual friend, introduced us. I was so excited I could hardly string two words together...I loved her style, just as I also admired Gene Kelly..."

Do you think the Americans inevitably 'do' musicals better than the Brits? "That's the general feeling but I reckon we're getting much better at them. Where they have the edge is an energy and, more to the point, a confidence. When I was casting Just So in New York, we could have cast the show three times over, there were so many talented people at the auditions, and they all had confidence! They didn't arrive in an apologetic mood, the way so many British performers do. When it comes to musical theatre we can certainly achieve anything the Americans can - we just need to believe it!"

On The Town has been another hit, and an exciting new development for English National Opera. Might you work with them again on another musical? "That's always a possibility, especially as On The Town worked very well. It was a treat to have a stage as big as the Coliseum's, and to have a cast as large and as talented as the one we worked with. The only drawback was that I wasn't allowed to re-arrange any of the music - the Bernstein Estate was very definite about that, and though I understand their position, as a choreographer I know that some of the dance numbers would have worked better if I hadn't been constricted by the music - I'd like to have cut and moved round some of the music to make the dances work better. But the public seem to like what I was able to do, so I can't complain."

Any future projects? "I'm going to be working with Disney on the stage musical of The Little Mermaid. My agent wants me to have a rest - I've been working non-stop for over three years now, but the chance to work with Disney is too good to miss. I am going to have three weeks off this Christmas, though - in Disneyland!"

And finally, any favourite theatre restaurants? "I like Mercury, in Islington, near the Almeida Theatre. It's a very good French restaurant I can recommend."

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by Paul Webb
Thursday April 21