Tony Christie
“It’s been a bit fraught,” admits Tony Christie, with a chuckle. “There was a lot to learn, a lot of dancing, a lot of on and off stage bits...”
As if that wasn’t challenge enough, Tony is playing two parts in the show.
“It’s a good boy-meets-girl tale told in flashbacks,” explains the singer, “and I’m playing the boy-who-meets-the-girl’s father and the granddad of another character. It’s quite frenetic and they’re all young kids except for me, but I think I’m holding my own.”
Although this is Tony’s West End debut, it could have been very different. Having sung the role of Magaldi on the Evita concept album, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice wanted Tony to play the role on stage but schedules wouldn’t permit.
“I was so far booked ahead with tours I couldn’t do it.” Tony laughs. “And the tours were proper money, not West End money and I had young kids going to private schools at that point!”
One of those children is now Tony’s manager and the reason his father is now starring in Dreamboats & Petticoats.
“I saw it about a year ago and said to my son that if I was ever in a musical, I’d like to be in one where the audience are on their feet and they’ll come out with a smile on their face. He said ‘well do you fancy doing this one? Shall I ring Bill Kenwright?’ And he did, and Bill said ‘yeah, your dad can join anytime he wants!’ So I’ve cleared the schedules, apart from a couple of festivals, so over the next three months, apart from three or four shows, I’ll be there two matinees, eight shows a week.”
There are many younger performers who’d struggle with that sort of commitment, but Tony seems unfazed. “I’ve never really abused the voice, so I can still hit the notes,” he explains, and he’s naturally fit. “It’s certainly not with exercise!” he laughs. “Work is my exercise. And I’m walking a lot, I play golf when I get the chance, but that’s about it. Fortunately my Irish ancestry means I stay slim, I’ve got my dad’s genes.”
Interviewing Tony there’s an overwhelming temptation to ask him just what IS the way to Amarillo? While Tony will admit to being asked similar things for years – “it’s cab drivers, mostly: ‘where to mate? Amarillo?’” – he takes it in good spirit. “Besides,” he continues, “it’s an amazing song, a pop classic.”
Given that Dreamboats & Petticoats is built around similar pop classics, it’s almost inevitable that Amarillo will feature. And it does.
“Originally, when I signed up for the show, I said there’s no way we can do it, it’s the wrong period: This is set in 1961, Amarillo was a hit in 1971. And Bill said, ‘oh no, it’s going in! People will lynch us if you don’t sing that!’ So,” he adds proudly, “it’s sort of shoehorned in - but it is getting a fantastic reaction.”
Tony Christie is appearing in Dreamboats & Petticoats at The Playhouse Theatre in London.