[MUSIC/Pop ~ WORLD PREMIERE ~ SA]

The Moa (open-air) at Gluttony, Wed 23 Feb.

If we had been expecting (from the name of this show) to hear classical music renditions of favourite Beatles songs, that is quickly blown away when ringmaster Anthony Leppa – dressed in Sgt Pepper coat – bursts onto the stage to invite us to roll up for the mystery tour. A full rock band included Dusty Lee Stephensen on guitar and vocals, Ian “Polly” Politis on keyboards, and a 15-piece orchestra under the baton of Julian Ferraretto, proceed to lead us through some very authentic-sounding renditions of songs from the Magical Mystery Tour album. A rare event, given that The Beatles never performed most of these songs live. And The Beatles were using orchestral backing on their recordings by this time also.

Perhaps not as celebrated as some other Beatles albums, because it was a record label compilation of the Magical Mystery Tour EP and singles from the time, a compilation John Lennon didn’t want released, it nevertheless contains some of The Beatles’ best work, and is a joy to hear being performed masterfully and enthusiastically.

The EP, soundtrack to the film Magical Mystery Tour, is performed first, with the title track followed by Fool On The Hill, and the lesser known Flying and Blue Jay Way. Everyone on stage is clearly having fun with Your Mother Should Know. Dusty Lee Stephenson, who really should have been a Beatle, absolutely nails I Am The Walrus. Some encouraged audience participation has the crowd singing along to ‘Oompah oompah, stick it up your jumper’. Anthony Leppa, meanwhile, has all the assorted tape loops in this song covered by his laptop – although I wasn’t expecting an appearance from Peter Goers at this point.

The singles follow, including: Hello Goodbye, Strawberry Fields Forever, Penny Lane (allowing the orchestra to reference the fact that this song was inspired by Bach!), Baby You’re A Rich Man, and All You Need Is Love. A little flourish of the outro of Hey Jude to signal that the show is over too soon.

If you are looking for a show that is great fun, steeped in nostalgia, with The Beatles’ music presented with enthusiasm and authenticity then head for this pre-sunset outdoor show at The Moa at Gluttony. But without the grand hoopla of flashy light shows and noise that are usually a feature of such shows, I did feel that the ticket price warranted a longer show in a more sympathetic indoor setting.

Adrian Miller