Based on the award-winning 1982 classic starring Richard Gere and Deborah Winger, we follow the story of Zack Mayo and his fellow recruits as they embark on their gruelling training to become Navy Jet Pilots.
Zack (Luke Baker) – a military brat who was forced to live with his alcoholic US Navy Petty Office father in the Philippines following his mother’s suicide – has a bad attitude and immediately clashes with their drill sergeant Emil Foley (Jamal Crawford). With an unexpected romance with young factory workers Paula Pokrifki (Georgia Lennon), Zach and his fellow candidates learn some tough lessons about love and life.
Be prepared for a ‘Top Gun meets Rock of Ages’ scenario. The production is presented in a jukebox format, with popular 80s songs from Bon Jovi, Heart, Madonna, John Farnham, Blondie and more, with some of the lyrics altered to suit the direction of the plot – “I’m going UP in a blaze of glory,” “We’re in the NAVY now,” etc. While I’m a huge fan of this style, I’m not entirely convinced it worked. The vocal talents of some of the cast were certainly impressive – Georgia Lennon’s heartfelt rendition of Heart’s ‘Alone’ was beautiful – but it felt like many of the songs (many of which were perhaps a verse and chorus length) were there for padding rather than plot development. Additionally, the fun pop songs didn’t particularly represent the multiple hard-hitting themes of the show.
The audience clearly warmed to many of the characters, including the no-nonsense Foley and the determined Casey Seeger (Olivia Foster-Browne) as she attempts to become the first female jet pilot. For me, it was Paul French in the role of Sid Worley that shone – I was disappointed that he didn’t feature more in solo singing moments.
Of course, it is the now iconic finale that most seemed to be waiting for, and the sight of Zack in his uniform ready to sweep Paula off her feet had a few very excited women in the audience physically standing and cheering.
The cast are young and clearly talented, and while it lacked some of the finesse of a seasoned tour (and some sound and vocal pitch issues need to be worked out), An Officer and a Gentleman is a fun evening spent if you’re able to separate the musical from the movie.
Suzie Speaks 
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