Downstage Drama

J ukebox musicals remain an infuriatingly confusing topic for me as I find the idea of them marketable, fun and usually in line with musical theatre’s campy reputation. However, I also maintain that they seem to be incredibly easy to get wrong. Moulin Rouge! took one of my favourite films and added some questionable songs like Chandelier and Firework to an otherwise inspired arrangement. I believe that Mamma Mia is able to largely avoid the famed Jukebox Discourse due to it only using ABBA songs, allowing the musical to follow one thread of style and storytelling, instead of relying on a huge multitude of artists, genres and decades. &Juliet fell into this trap and, whilst it had good intentions, ended up barely scratching the surface in terms of lyrical storytelling. And perhaps that is why Just For One Day’s musical decisions worked.  Firstly, this is the first Jukebox musical I’ve seen that is heavily based on a true story and so the choice to use already well-known music he...

The Devil Wears Prada, another iconic 90s-2000s “chick-flick” and one of my favourite films, has recently premiered as a brand new West End musical. With music by Elton John, I had very high expectations but this production proved to me that it has the power and beauty of a hit musical, with the accessories to match.  Firstly, the aesthetic of the musical was tackled in a very interesting way. Glossy and chic, every design choice seemed to have been very carefully chosen to match the fashion magazine vibe of the entire production. Right down to the show programme, made to look like a spring issue. Even the foyer of the Dominion was dressed to perfection with modelling photos and curated mannequins. There were many lighting states that reflected this too, with clean white shapes or pops of bright colour. I certainly got the chic-ness of the magazine, but Runway is also meant to have editorial photoshoots, eye-catching spreads and heaps of drama, sexiness and beauty. I came to the sh...

Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, by Edward Albee, is a startling commentary on the pitfalls of marital life and the compressing, suffocating effects of gender roles and competition. In fact, the word “suffocating” encapsulates much of the essence of this play and, in my opinion, summarises its messages. Physically, it is set in one kitchen for the entire three acts, with the same four characters simply entering and re-entering. From just reading it, the atmosphere feels constricted and tight. And then there’s the characters. Each one slowly being suffocated in their respective marriages, their careers and their own perceptions of themselves and the world around them. They, (explicitly Martha and George) allow damage and hurt to infiltrate their lives in every way possible, and in a sense, are suffocating themselves in doing so. It is a very interesting way of writing - how at first Albee implies that someone else has their hands around the characters’ necks, when in fact, as it is reve...

Recently, I’ve seen and heard a lot of praise for the hit Netflix show, Adolescence, the majority of which seeming to be about the actors performing in one take. The show is brilliant and the actors are incredibly resilient and talented. And, whilst it’s not a perfect equivalent, I can’t help finding parallels between this type of screen acting and theatre in general. Every hour-long episode of Adolescence is performed in one shot, start to finish, with patience and planning making up for the much easier technique of hidden cuts or multiple cameras. The cast and crew must perform and be “switched on” every time they film the episode. If they lose focus for a second, the take is ruined.  It’s also a lot of lines and blocking to learn - mistakes can’t just be reset or edited out! In fact, in episode 3, a mistake is left in, where Owen Cooper, playing Jamie, yawned in the middle of a conversation. Erin Doherty, playing Briony, then improvised, asking “Am I boring you?”. It added a ve...

As both a Drama and English Language student, I read a lot of plays and study a lot of words, grammar, spellings and punctuation. I find these two subjects fascinating in their own right: plays have the power to creatively inspire the reader, audience and the professionals who will be bringing it to life, and the English Language provides the tools for the playwright to actually do this.  We’ve been exposed to a lot of prescriptivist media lately, article after article complaining about ‘the decline of our language” or how “the youth of today are abandoning the rules of English”. As a student, I’m required to take a more descriptive approach, which encourages one to observe how English is changing, rather than prevent it. But I don’t have this attitude just because I’m told to. I believe that the idea that English has certain rules (which inherently are all rooted in classism) is ridiculous . Because plays break these rules in every creative, theatrical choice the playwright makes....

So we all know that a four-movie biopic about the Beatles is currently in the works, but did you know that 50 years ago, Willy Russell wrote an award-winning play about the famous foursome? And I read it! The only other Willy Russell play I’ve seen is Blood Brothers and I was able to spot large parallels between the two Liverpool-set shows. John Paul George Ringo…& Bert , written in 1974, features a clever, quick witted voice, strongly developed characters - each with their own idiolects and sound, and most noticeably for me, a striking thematic distinction between Act One and Act Two. All very Blood Brothers -esque.  The play is narrated by Bert McGhee, a fictional singular representation of the band’s hoard of loyal fans. He’s energetic, warm and a little bit weird - a bit hopeless but sweet all the same. He acts as the reminder of who the Beatles once were before the money, fame and drugs. Simple Scouse lads with a dream. And so, when he’s paired next to the argument-stric...

What is “bad drama”? Probably the most logical answer would be theatre that we hate, right? Drama, directing, acting and design that elicit a negative reaction, one of disgust or disappointment. And, in the moment, this can cause audiences to scoff or to roll their eyes, tell-tale signs that what they are watching is not good . But I don’t think this is entirely true. Perhaps, yes, the drama might be “bad” but aren’t those feelings, those full-body experiences of fury and scorn, theatre in itself? I believe that dramatic, theatrical desires and emotion run through the veins of all of us. Any ideas that come from deep, repressed parts of our humanity is, in my eyes, what theatre is. And so, in that sense, the wide spectrum of reactions in response to “bad drama”, the ones that come from a buried recess in the body and psyche, can be called drama itself, allowing it to act as a reprise of the production that warrants such strong feelings.  I find reading negative theatre reviews fa...

Richard Twyman’s adaptation of Macbeth at the Lyric Hammersmith has left me feeling rather  curious. I now ask myself the question: “did it work, or was it just good acting?”. Whilst the set is stunning: a floor to ceiling construction of a mid-century urban mansion. Dark oak panels, a full kitchen and mystifying details such as working shower, giant mirror and disco ball, each having their place in the story, feature prominently and leave a resounding impression in my mind. There are many choices I agreed with. One of which being possibly the most striking addition: the element of live video recordings. Some made to look like security camera footage, some streaming directly from an actor’s video camera on stage, some playing the role of Banquo’s ghost. Because the three witches were not exactly played by a member of the cast, I interpreted this to be a representation of the pressure Macbeth felt from the witches’ prophecies and their omniscient nature, ultimately leading him and h...

Willy Russell’s Blood Brothers is just over 40 years old and still continues to amaze me. I first saw this musical a decade ago, when I was just 7 years old (the same age as the boys at the beginning of the show) and even then, having very little idea of what the actual story was, I remember being completely captivated. Back then, I understood almost nothing about the historical context of the story, the nuances of each character or the technical marvels of the musical. And yet it dug itself into the deep recesses of my brain and, for the most part, became one of the founding pillars for my love of theatre. I’ve seen it twice more since then, the latest being just a few days ago, and was lucky enough to see Sean Jones (Mickey) and Joe Sleight (Eddie) for both. I find these two actors fascinating. I have never met more lively, fresh characters and, under the actors’ guidance, the sparkling chemistry between them became such a character itself.  Sean Jones is particularly interest...

Clueless The Musical  is a brand new musical that is  so totally  creative and brilliant. To start, the music of  Clueless  (the 1995 film) is a very distinct mixtape of bright, youthful pop songs that remain truthful to the trendy and fresh-faced cast of characters. (Think  Kids in America  by Kim Wilde and Supergrass’s  Alright,  both songs that feature on the soundtrack). I was interested to see how this would translate into original musical theatre, and luckily, they called upon KT Tunstall, an established singer/songwriter who is well versed in the quirks of 90s-00s pop. You may know her from her 2005 hit  Suddenly I See.  Tunstall wrote the music for the musical, with Glenn Slater as lyricist, and the electric guitars, synth-y feel and slight blend of different styles and genres means they really could have been blasted out of a teen’s Boombox in 1995. This authenticity make the whole musical feel so much more camp and up...

Never Land, written by Phyllis Nagy in 1998, is set in a small town in France, following an ambitious yet heartbroken family through their dramas and tribulations. Henri’s desire, above all else, is to live and work in England, and we see him get closer and closer to the realisation of this dream, before it is plucked out of his fingers, sending him and the whole family into a downward spiral of depression and self-loathing. This is, of course, played in tandem to a socio-economic crisis that leaves the family in crippling debt and despair. At the same time, the daughter Elisabeth’s abusive fiancé, Michael, ends the relationship in a chaotic, full-blown speech, destroying Elisabeth and causing her already fragile emotions to crack and burst free from her heart in the overblown climax of the play. The text itself is simultaneously haunting and tumultuous, as a play about extreme heartbreak should be. But, Nagy does not play to your expectations. She completely removes all boundaries, de...

We all have a pet peeve, no matter how often we tell ourselves we don’t. Mine, like many other theatre-goers, is the increasing number of rude and inappropriate audience members we are having to share auditoriums with. Watching Matilda on the West End a few weeks ago, I noticed at least three people whip their phones out of their pocket, scroll on Snapchat, send a quick message or, God forbid, sneak a quick snap of the stage. Not to mention a couple having the most in depth, obtuse conversation possible bang in the middle of my eye line. I know I’m not alone in these experiences. So why is it these insensitive audiences seem to be getting more and more common? The first possibility is, and excuse me whilst I sound like your old uncle at Christmas, those damn phones. TikTok and YouTube have become a breeding ground for illegal filming of these shows, many reaching hundreds of thousands of views. Wicked seems to be a particular favourite of these bootleg creators, one playlist of which g...

A Streetcar Named Desire, written by Tennessee Williams in 1947, follows two sisters as they reconnect and discover more about each other, in the landscape of an urban, post-war New Orleans. The young women, formidable Blanche Dubois and dutiful Stella Kowalski, live with Stella’s husband Stanley, often drunk and aggressive yet protective of his wife. Many other male characters reveal themselves throughout the play, particularly Mitch, who attempts to spark a romance with Blanche.  A main message of the play for me is the gender roles and expectations awarded to men and women. The actions that the men are allowed to indulge themselves in, drinking, gambling and sex, are admonished when performed by Blanche. This is apparent of the time period, as the early-to-mid 1900s are infamous for this kind of discrimination. However, Blanche is a powerhouse, whose mysterious backstory is one of sordid exploits and a degrading reputation. She is the subject of rumours, insults and assumptions,...

War Horse is an adaptation of Michael Morpurgo’s 1982 novel, adapted by Nick Stafford in 2007. It follows the friendship and separation of young Albert and his horse, Joey,   as they face the horrors of trench warfare in 1916. This grave backdrop is expertly contrasted with the previous idyllic countryside of pre-war England, using muddy soldier uniforms, dark lighting and literal barbed wire to encapsulate the danger of No Man’s Land. This contrast is further explored with the reappearance of traditional folk songs often played with instrument accompaniment by one actress.   It didn’t seem like she was directing her music to the audience though, more so to Albert, the protagonist, or even the horses. The whimsical, traditional folk lore mixed with the foreign, terrifying modernity of war served as a constant reminder of Devon, of what was missed and eventually, what was lost. In representing the destruction of the English landscape, a huge watercolour projection overhangs the...

Hi! My name is Tilly. I'm 17, in Year 12, and studying for my A Levels. This blog is where I'll share my thoughts on everything theatre and Drama. You'll find reviews for scripts and shows, as well as articles on theatre-going culture. I hope to go to University to study Theatre/Performance Studies and start my career in the industry. My dream is to be a director but I aim to dabble in as much of the theatre world as possible, including acting, producing and writing.