An impeccable stage adaptation of the beloved 1946 film about true love and afterlife, captivating the audience from the moment it began!
This stage adaptation hooked me from the moment it began, the immediate introduction of music created joy that radiated off the stage, engaged me and making me smile. Each musician was a talented individual, I admired how in between songs that they were able to multi role and display their talent in acting as well as their impeccable musical ability. The format of the musical beginning followed by the narration about the universe was an unexpected and satisfying introduction to the production, perfectly balancing emotions, the staging and lighting matching perfectly with the actors' abilities and enhancing the experience to immersed the audience and keep them focussed and entertained.
As someone who hasn’t had the pleasure of watching the full film, but has enjoyed the beginning, I loved the adapted take on Peter and June’s talk. How the story of Peter and June began was an unexpected way of staging, but an absolutely fascinating one. I truly admire Thomas Dennis (Peter Carter) for being able to hang in the air whilst acting, I was amazed at his diverse skill from seeing him in 'The three musketeers' to seeing him as the lead in 'A matter of life and death'. How he performed his role was truly inspiring to young actors like me, his range and ability will never cease to amaze.
From seeing familiar faces back on stage like Michael Hugo (Conductor 71), amongst others, it is always a thrill for me to see convincing and charismatic accents full of personality, giving a clear differentiation when actors multi role and perform as a new character. As always, Michael Hugo's performance was captivating and hilarious, from seeing him in previous productions I think it is safe to say that in every production he is an audience favourite. Additionally the performance of Kayla Copeland (June) was an impeccable one, the emotion her character conveyed, weather happy, sad, worried or in love made the audience feel the same. How she displayed her characters journey and emotion helped me as an audience member to feel a true emotional connection to the ongoing journey, and it's safe to say she performed this role absolutely perfectly.
In conclusion, I can not fault this production at all, the acting was incredible, engaging, and created emotion to connect the audience to the characters. A favourite scene of mine being the court in heaven, using the audience as the court was a clever implication that I enjoyed. The costuming and props were flawless as usual, a personal favourite being the Doctor's bike and outfit. As I came along with my grandparents who are fans of the film, they noted how they were particularly impressed with Polly Lister (Doc Reeves) as she performed her role beautifully, they loved the characters charm, confidence and intelligence, which Polly performed impeccably, and they noted how she did an exceptional job at performing in this adaptation.
I cannot wait to see more performances from the New Vic and members of this cast, I hope we get more music like the Band in future New Vic performances as the musicians were absolutely amazing and brought the whole production together as a perfect experience.
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