DOMINION POST

Reviewed by Ewen Coleman – Dominion Post; Monday, February 26, 2007.

Just when it seemed that the best of this year’s Fringe had been and gone, a production emerges that epitomizes what so many before have lacked; David Goldthorpe’s solo performance on the life and times of legendary jazz musician Chet Baker, Like Someone in Love.
Baker’s personal life of sex, booze and drugs was the antithesis of his laidback jazz style. It is said that, in his later years, when he resembled a walking corpse, Baker would look in the mirror and see himself young, beautiful and angelic, which is exactly what David Goldthorpe is (a Dan Carter of the theatre) and which he uses as his starting point.
He proceeds to take the audience through the highs and lows of Baker’s life, interspersing the dialogue with expertly arranged Baker classics under the musical direction of Tim Solly. This is no impersonation of Baker, or a boring chronology of his life, but an exceptionally well-researched and written piece, professionally put together by Goldthorpe and director David Lawrence. In contrast to the beautifully melodic music, the dialogue is raw and hard-nosed. Goldthorpe is not frightened to show the sorrowing pain of Baker’s life that made him as infamous as his music made him famous.
This is a show for theatre-goers as well as jazz lovers and one that deserves a repeat season.

THEATREVIEW

Reviewed by John Smythe; Theatreview 24th Feb 2007

That Like Someone In Love is expressed entirely from the subjective viewpoint of its subject, Chet Baker, is both its limitation and its strength. As a bio-play, it leaves lots out - not least, the manner of his death (falling from a hotel window in Amsterdam in 1988, aged 58). As a portrait of self-delusion, however, it demands we engage with our critical faculties intact.

Singer/actor/trumpet player David Goldthorpe and director David Lawrence - backed by a superb jazz trio: Tim Solly (piano), Mostyn Cole (bass), Richard Wise (drums) - have crafted a simple yet classy show that might well mesmerise us with cool jazz if it did not also challenge us with flashes of fact that are hard to ignore.

As soft sounds flow from Goldthorpe's perpetually young Chet - his jazz trumpet and equally smooth voice, both singing and talking - the blissed-out dimension of drug addiction is clearly evoked. The title song itself is offered as an ode to heroin. 'But Not for Me', 'My Funny Valentine', 'The Touch of Your Lips' and 'Look for the Silver Lining' are judiciously placed to punctuate and illuminate the unfolding story.

There are moments of self pity, anger and paranoia but mostly he's cruising on a plane high above reality. It's the passing parade of women's names and the children he 'fathered' with them that jolt us into realising his claim - shouted at an arresting officer - that he's hurting nobody else is deeply deluded. In short, he's a self-serving arsehole.

What's missing from this brief trip through subjective experience is the hanging out phase of addiction, and the ruthlessly desperate need to find the money to feed his habit. That he had the talent to do so (playing live gigs in Europe and recording constantly: his discography is vast) without, as far as I know, ripping off friends and colleagues was both his fortune and misfortune (in that such moral imperatives can be a catalyst in motivating addicts to liberate themselves from oppression).

Baker, by this account, never saw himself as the author of his own degradation. His lack of invincibility is well captured in the moment when his trumpet produces no melodic sound, just a rasp of empty air. This could be a metaphor for his death or a hint at what might have motivated his suicide, if that's what it was.

Which ever way you look at it, Like Someone In Love is well worth tuning into because it resonates well beyond itself.

JAZZ TRUMPETER'S FAME & TRAGEDY DRAWS AUDIENCE

OTAGO DAILY TIMES
Reviewed by Barbara Frame Tuesday May 6, 2008

THE atmosphere is smoky and the lights are dim and blue. There are musical instruments, including a trumpet, on a cheap-looking bed, and there’s a little table supporting various items that can be injected, ingested or smoked. So it can only be about jazz.

David Goldthorpe “is” Chet Baker, who died, via an Amsterdam window, in 1988. Supposedly 58, he looks no more than half that age, but we come to understand that that’s how Baker perceived himself.

Goldthorpe also has an exceptionally pleasant singing voice, and if the programme hadn’t informed us that he learned to play the trumpet especially for the role of Chet, I would not have guessed.

Baker comes across as a not particularly sympathetic character: a negligent (several times) husband, father and son, given to self-pity rather than introspection, bravado, rather than bravery.

But the story of his rise to fame and his descent into drug-fuelled paranoia, researched and written by Goldthorpe and put together with director David Lawrence, is interesting.

The narration is interspersed with jazz standards such as My Funny Valentine, Look for the Silver Lining and Everything happens to Me.

Goldthorpe’s talent is complemented by Tim Solly on piano, Craig Sinclair on bass, and Paul McLennan-Kissel on drums and the fine music contrasts with the character’s wildness.

The Fortune Studio was packed last night and the audience was particularly appreciative of the short, supernumerary jazz performances when the one-hour play as such was over.

Jazz fans and others have until Saturday to enjoy the production.