Stiles and Drewe

Would love to have seen Betty!

The title plays a big part.


My favourite "Stiles and Drew" show is Soho Cinders, which I saw in concert at the Queens, at the Soho Theatre and most recently at the Union. Such a cracking score. I did love Betty too (saw the original production 4 times) but thinks they overestimated how much interest there would be due to there being a royal wedding.
Their additional material for Half a Sixpence and Mary Poppins I think is great too.

Let me play devil's advocate and say that my problem with S & D is that they have no distinctive style. There is no Stiles and Drew sound, at least not one that is discernible to me. I think that's one of the reasons they do so well interpolating new songs into other people's shows - their own music is generic enough to fit in almost anywhere.

It's almost a pity they are best known for creating additional songs for well known shows, they have never quite had that big commercial hit off their own backs despite backing from the likes of Cameron.

I think its sad that 25 years on Stiles and Drewe remain the hope of the British Musical Theatre. Honk! had energy and imagination and truly everything else is professional but uninspired. Their additional material for Mary Poppins and Half a Sixpence was no better than the songs they replaced and Betty Blue Eyes, to me, was imply a bad show that was wildly over-produced. But who else is there on these shores?

Some interesting thoughts, many of which I agree with.

I’m not sure I’d say they’re not successful because they are but they’re definitely not up there with the big shots. I wonder if the stuff they’ve written about is just too niche- kiddies’ stories (three short works chugged out in the past couple of years in addition to Wind in the Willows), an Alan Bennett (I’m a huge AB fan but I reckon few others are really into musicals) and the goings-on on Old Compton Street.

I understand where you’re coming from mallardo, but I think they do have a distinctive style. It’s rather gentle, genteel perhaps and rather ‘English’. Maybe the reason they were chosen over Alan Menken and Tim Rice for Mary Poppins… Half a Sixpence fits nicely into all three categories too. I think it’s quite a skill to match another musical style; that was the brief and they succeeded! They don’t try to match the soaring melodies and the dramatic exchanges we’ve seen and grown used to in the mega-musicals, especially over the past thirty years or so. They tend to write about small things and small emotions- Mrs Banks tells us that being Mrs Banks isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, Velcro imagines what life would be like keeping a goldfish, and the kolokolo bird can’t work out why she should search for something that’s not in her nature. I didn’t know Carrying the Torch until Sunday afternoon, but what a gorgeous little song this is. Telling the story of a young girl’s first taste of Shakespeare, she returns again and again as she has fallen head over heels in love, not with the lead, or even the second in command, but with one of the chorus. It's a theme that could have been lifted from our Les Mis thread on here…! "I’m the girl who’s carrying a torch for the boy who’s carrying a spear…"

They seemed happy with their successes. But I agree, as with Robbie, Magical Kingdoms always seem just out of their reach.

They’ve found their niche, I reckon. I don’t think they’ll make any big changes to their careers now. They’ve found their Corner of the Sky.

No doubt they have had a successful career over a long period of time but they haven't ever quite taken it to the next level. I agree that it will be interesting to see who if anyone becomes the next big British Musical Composer or Composing team.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - YES YES YES!