Review: The Rise and Fall of Little Voice

Jim Cartwright’s northern drama centres around the shy, yet incredibly talented Little Voice (Lydia Clay-White), and her noisy, chaotic mother Mari (Harriet Wilton), as they exist rather helplessly on Ryvita, liquor and the record collection of Little Voice’s deceased father. That is, until Little Voice’s rather big voice starts to invite unwanted attention.

From the beautifully-toned preset, allowing glimpses of Jonathan Powell’s impressive set design which perfectly captures the disordered tumult of Little Voice’s home life, to a glamourous club venue with accompanying light show, this production does not cease in its aesthetic delight. However, Wilton immediately steals all of the attention with her exuberant and roaring portrayal of Mari, who provides a large part of both the comedy and the tragedy of this play – Mari’s dirty humour and talk of ‘electrickery’ have the audience laughing both with and at her, while the real tears that Wilton produced at a moment of great poignancy had me welling up too.

Mari is a woman who talks for all those around her, a fact embodied in the new telephone she gets put in which always sees her making the calls, and almost never receiving them. It is no surprise, then, that most of the people she surrounds herself with have little-to-no voice, and the shyness and timid anxiety that Clay-White brings to the stage would have you believe she really is suffering from stage fright – until she sings.

Photo: Cora Alexander

As someone who was fully aware that Clay-White was doing all of her own singing live on stage, I must admit that even I had a moment where I was inclined to share the same sentiment as the whispers around me: surely that’s a recording? But no, believe it or not, that Monroe you just heard was in fact Clay-White herself, and she goes on to absolutely nail impressions of all manner of singers who are already renowned as amazing. This play is about a girl with an incredible talent, and to both have that talent and act the role stunningly is something really special.

Wilton’s and Clay-White’s remarkable performances were backed up by a strong cast all round. Connor Rowlett as the ambitious and selfish club manager, Ray Say, really came into his own throughout the performance, and particularly shined at the moment Ray launches an angry and spiteful attack on Mari. Charlie Morrell-Brown as a sweet telephone-boy-and-avid-lighting-enthusiast, Billy, brings out the ‘awwww’s and manages to make turning up at the window unannounced romantic and adorable rather than creepy as you might expect.

Photo: Cora Alexander

Helena Fox’s Mr Boo acts as a humorous compère for both real and imaginary audience throughout Little Voice’s performances, and Lucy Green’s Sadie – another character who Mari does most of the talking for, though, without the timidity of Little Voice, her silences don’t always feel quite as natural – provides many laugh-out-loud moments, with great physical comedy and particularly a dance number you do not want to miss. At times I thought these secondary characters deserved a little more fleshing out, and found Little Voice’s constant inspection of her record collection a little repetitive, but overall this cast have all shown great talent and should be really proud of a wonderfully hilarious, beautifully tragic, and quietly uplifting show.

Photo: Cora Alexander

Director Georgina Deri has utilised the well-designed set and a brilliant cast marvellously with blocking that seems natural and fills the space with ease – Mari in particular moves like a whirlwind through her empty and chaotic house. The scenes of intimacy between Mari and Ray Say were well-choreographed and professional, and additionally I very much enjoyed the array of dressing gowns which featured in an all-round well-costumed production.

I was disappointed to find that the stage fire ran into some difficulties on opening night, but I’m sure that with these issues resolved for the rest of the run it will be a sight to see! Deasil Waltho’s creative lighting design is another element of this show worthy of praise – not only did the darker scenes always take on pleasing dashes of colour to ensure nothing was ever ‘plain’, but the well-timed flickers of ‘electrickery’ are a lovely touch, and Billy’s ‘light show’ truly is a spectacle to see you ‘flying’!

Ultimately, this show features a truly talented cast brought together under some great direction and complimented by an array of talented crew who have made this show a spectacle, a laugh, a cry, and many emotions in between!

4/5 stars

Cover: Jonathan Powell