Barry Kent

How to be a star without being noticed

He was born Barry Sautereau in London on 19 February 1932 of a French father and an English mother. He trained as an aircraft engineering apprentice and was in the Royal Air Force before working in the hotel business for two years. He also trained privately for the stage, with Mabel Corran for singing and Mary Phillips for drama. His London debut was in Pink Champagne, a lavish night-club revue at the Pigalle Restaurant. He worked extensively as a night-club singer and in pantomime. The first musical play was Harmony Close, in which he first appeared in the small role of Sam at the Theatre Royal, Brighton

An Arthurian quiff nicely sets off Kent's chain mail in Camelot

in March 1957, transferring with the show to the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith the following month. By June 1957 he was playing the Ship's Captain in Peter Greenwell's mini-musical Antarctica at the Players Theatre, and that August went into the chorus of Damn Yankees at the Coliseum. With the role of Reggie in Frank Loesser's delightful adaptation of Charley's Aunt, Where's Charley?', came a number of his own - 'Pernambuco' - at the Palace Theatre in February 1958, and the show was a solid success, staying a year.

The big break seemed hard to come by. On leaving Where's Charley? he played Count Danilo in Lehar's The Merry Widow for a season at Scarborough (I have been unable to trace his leading lady), and then went back to being a night-club singer. He was in Belle at the Strand Theatre in May 1961 in the small role of Augustus, but he had no numbers of his own and no billing, although he took part in a Salvation Army-type number 'The Devil's Bandsman'.

Three years passed before he was cast by Jack Hylton as Lancelot in the British production of Lerner and Loewe's extravaganza Camelot at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in August 1964. It was the part of his life, and was well-deserved, for Kent not only brought a ringing singing voice but strong looks and a certain vulnerability to the role. But this was Britain. On Broadway Lancelot had been played by Robert Goulet, who made a great impression in the part, but Kent couldn't expect that on his home ground. He had to make do with singing 'If Ever I Would Leave You' on the grandest stage in London. Five years later he was back at Drury Lane playing a leading role (Beauregard) to Ginger Rogers's Mame, but the part was small and didn't give him the opportunities of Camelot.

Discography
Where's Charley? Original London cast
Harmony Close Original London cast
Camelot Original London cast

 

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