During June the Sydney Theatre Company presented the Melbourne Theatre Company’s production of the Broadway hit, ‘Urinetown’ (music by Mark Hollman and book by Greg Kotis) at the Sydney Theatre.

‘Urinetown’ is a modern parable that takes place in a big city which has been crippled by water shortages after a 20 year drought that has forced the government to outlaw public toilets. The play is narrated by tough talking cop Officer Lovestock (Shane Bourne) and street urchin Little Sally (Christen O’Leary). They tell of how people can only relieve themselves in public facilities that are all controlled by the Good Urine Company, owned by the wicked Caldwell B. Cladwell(Gerry Connolly) and managed by Penelope Pennywise (Rhonda Burchmore). An inevitable complication in the battle between good and evil develops when ditzy daughter Hope (Lisa McCune) falls for the naive Bobby Strong (David Campbell) who leads a band of rebels in a revolt against the might of Caldwell’s corporate machine.

‘Urinetown’ is a musical that sets its tone very early on. The play says don’t take me too seriously. Sure there’s some satire but its mainly for fun. The narrators’ frequently refer to how the story is being created to a formula. ‘Urinetown’ is mostly about songs, about glitz, about entertainment, about show!

All the values of the big American musical are here. Gabriela Tylesova designed an impressive, large scale set that included, what were meant to look like sewerage pipes, through which actors came and went. ‘Urinetown’ contained some eighteen songs for the cast to sing their heart with.
Hollman’s score featured plenty of catchy tunes.

The tone of the performances, across the board, was very hammy. There were plenty of outrageous costumes and wigs. Pick of a very full-on cast were David Campbell, Shane Bourne, Lisa McCune, Rhonda Burchmore, Gerry Connolly and Lisa McCune.

‘Whilst ‘Urinetown’ was good fun, it doesn’t rate as a great musical. It never came close to engaging the heart.