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Review: Blood Brothers, written by Willy Russell, running at Newark Palace Theatre until Saturday October 26




Which iconic musical can boast that it is brilliantly funny, chillingly menacing, and heartbreakingly sad all in equal measure?

Blood Brothers, written by Willy Russell, the musical tells the captivating and moving tale of twins who are separated at birth after their mother, the struggling Mrs Johnstone (Vivienne Carlyle), gives one of the brothers to her wealthy boss, Mrs Lyons (Sarah Jane Buckley).

Carlyle is wonderful as Mrs Johnstone, whose acting and singing chops blew me and the whole audience away, and there wasn’t a dry eye in the house when the iconic Tell Me It’s Not True closed the show.

The Blood Brothers musical is returning to Nottingham's Theatre Royal.
The Blood Brothers musical is returning to Nottingham's Theatre Royal.

Sean Jones and Joe Sleight play twins Mickey and Eddie respectively, and the former is hands down the best Mickey I’ve ever seen as we watch Mickey grow from a seven (nearly eight!) year old rascal to a grown man battling his own demons.

It takes a hugely talented actor to portray a child without the performance becoming over the top, as well as a man struggling with mental health and addiction, and Jones was absolutely outstanding and certainly believable as both a youngster and drug-addled adult.

Joe Sleight is also brilliant as the pampered and naive Eddie, and Scott Anson also brought plenty of menace to the Narrator, who lurks like the Grim Reaper over the shoulder of the tortured Mrs Johnstone.

The show’s themes doesn’t just cover differences in class and upbringing, but the menacing undertones of superstition, fate, mental health, and redemption are well portrayed, as Mrs Johnstone grapples with her decision and the manipulation from Mrs Lyons, who more than takes advantage of the former’s social and financial circumstances.

While the first act, where we see the characters as children, brings a little hope, the second act where they grow into adults was much darker as Mickey and Mrs Lyons spiral into madness and the situation comes to a dramatic head.

Set across Merseyside, I wondered how the show would portray the lower working class area where the Johnstones live as well as the wealthier area for the Lyons on a small stage such as Newark’s, but the minimal staging and seamless transitions work brilliantly.

Also, Liverpudlian is a difficult accent to master and maintain without sounding like Harry Enfield and Chums, but all of the Scouse accents were flawless.

As a huge fan of Blood Brothers, having seen this amazing show five times now, I knew I was in for a great night but hands down, this was the best I’ve ever seen.

It will run at the Palace Theatre, Newark, from Tuesday until Saturday. A British Sign Language (BSL) Interpreter will be in attendance tonight (October 23). — RA



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