Allan Corduner makes a musician's ability believable and the effort of working together worth watching. His Sullivan in Topsy-Turvy is a substantial performance, even with Jim Broadbent providing the partnership's strongest presence.
Fi1m perspective
The rehearsals in Topsy-Turvy (1999) matter because the people doing the work are not automatically comfortable together. Allan Corduner's Sir Arthur Sullivan differs enough in temperament from Jim Broadbent's Gilbert to make their continued collaboration interesting. Corduner allows us to believe in the work they can produce without suggesting that producing it will be easy. We warmed to his Sullivan because that combination of ability and friction made the partnership feel worth the trouble.
Broadbent is the more compelling presence, which puts a useful limit on any claim that Corduner carries the film. What Corduner supplies is a colleague with sufficient independence for the disagreements to have weight. Mike Leigh's script gives both men room, rather than making one a convenient explanation for the other's difficulties. Corduner's musical preparation and piano skills make him particularly well suited to Sullivan, but the performance does not stop at being qualified for the job. He helps make a film about rehearsal warm and funny.
Sullivan was his first major film lead and a breakthrough, rather than the start of a steady run of leading screen roles. His later work has continued through supporting parts, television and narration, with musical training useful for roles as conductors and pianists. He plays Gustav Bloch-Bauer in Woman in Gold (2015) and Sebastian Brix in TÁR (2022). Those credits suggest where to look further, though it is Sullivan on which our enthusiasm rests.
Leigh and Corduner have worked together on three films, and the patience of Topsy-Turvy suits this actor. There is time to establish Sullivan as someone with his own temperament, not simply the other half of a partnership. The historical detail occasionally holds things up, but we would be reluctant to hurry the actors. Start with Topsy-Turvy, and allow the rehearsals as much attention as the performances.
Biography
Allan Corduner is a British actor born on 2 April 1950 in Stockholm. He grew up in a secular Jewish home in London after moving to England as an infant. He earned a BA (Hons) in English and Drama from Bristol University and trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.
Corduner has worked extensively in theatre, film and television in the UK and the United States. His feature film debut was in Yentl (1983). He is known for portraying Sir Arthur Sullivan in Mike Leigh's Topsy-Turvy (1999), as well as roles in Mr. Nobody (2009), TÁR (2022), Florence Foster Jenkins (2016) and Disobedience (2018). He has appeared in television series including Homeland and The Blacklist, and has extensive stage credits including Broadway productions.
