Review: [title of show]

It is rare that I come out of the theatre and my face hurts from laughing so much, but that was exactly the case at the close of [title of show]. A witty, clever script, combined with a cast with excellent comic timing, lovely voices, and a deep seated love of theatre meant that the show held me enthralled throughout. Starting with Rice Krispie treats handed out at the door, it was hard to see how the play could possibly improve, but the production blew all early expectations out of the water. The four (well, I guess we should include the mostly silent, but excellently played by an amusing Frazer Hadfield, Larry as a fifth cast member) talented actors telling, and this is incredibly clichéd but utterly true, the heart-warming tale of two men writing a musical about two men writing a musical.

Every major Broadway show of the past three decades, from Rent to Into the Woods through to Aspects of Love is referenced over the course of the one act musical; a particularly memorable and impressive moment being the mocking of Les Misérables, and its repetitive nature. It was these moments of brilliance that highlight the directorial team’s, Taryn O’Connor, Cameron Kirby, and Frazer Hadfield, knowledge of and love for theatre, and meant the show stepped not into satirical Forbidden Broadway territory, but instead was clearly a love letter to the great Broadway Musical.

Whilst each member of the cast was generally great, it was Mimi von Schack’s performance which shone. Her comic timing, voice and, particularly, physicality meant that the eye was instantly drawn to her, and I’m sure the audience will be unable to forget the moment she shook every part of her body in the face of the silent pianist Larry. The few line slips were easily covered by the cast, and in fact added to the home-crafted sense of the piece.

The fault of this production lies not with the cast, but instead the book itself: the latter half of the musical drags, and the drought of songs and one-liners means it simply cannot live up to the brilliance of the opening scenes, despite the cast’s best effort in maintaining the high octane energy and enthusiasm established from the start. The play picks up towards the end, ending on a poignant, yet optimistic note.

The cast urge us to “ignore bad reviews”, instead appreciating the positive review of The New York Times and, whilst The Stand is not quite The New York Times yet, I’d urge the cast to take this review with the same enthusiasm the characters of the play do their excellent review, and I would recommend anyone with a passion, or even simply a passing interest, for theatre to catch this at the Barron Theatre this week.