[title of show] Review, filmed at the London Coliseum

Credit: https://www.instagram.com/lambertjacksonproductions/

Yesterday may have been Friday 13th... in 2020 no less... but Lambert Jackson pulled it out of the bag again. ... and gave me an Epiphany mid-writing.... (not THAT kind though if you get the reference🪒)

I don't know about you, but I have certainly become a little more creative in lockdown, even if it's only whipping out my Bara Brith recipe or doing a few stagey colouring sheets (get them from The Stagey Couple, they're awesome). 

And this is all about creativity. Specifically what it takes to create a musical from scratch. 

In [title of show] (YES that IS the real title, I'm not bluffing here!), Hunter and Jeff decide to submit a piece for a Musical Theatre festival in New York. The only issue is they have to write it first - in just 3 weeks! With help from Heidi and Susan, can they get it submitted on time? And was it all worth it?

[title of show] is a one-act musical written by Hunter Bell and Jeff Bowen, who also starred in the original cast along with Heidi Blickenstaff and Susan Blackwell (hence the names of the characters). It started life at a Manhatton Theatre Source festival in 2004, before transferring Off-Broadway in 2006 and to Broadway in 2008, where it received a Tony nod for its book. 

This production stars Marc Elliot, Tyrone Huntley, Lucie Jones (RENT) and Jenna Russell (Fun Home), and was filmed under social distancing guidelines in the rehearsal room of the London Coliseum. 

Like I said, it explores a behind the scenes look a writing a musical, as well as the psyche of taking on that task. So it isn't much of a surprise that it parodies the genre to an extent, making copious references to different musicals. Don't ask me to list off examples, I'll be here all week. But it also jibes at musical composition and structure as well, including chord intervals, dynamics and so on.

Credit: https://www.instagram.com/lambertjacksonproductions/

In fact, the best place to give you an idea is actually the names of the songs themselves, which in style remind me of other musicals of the early 2000s like Avenue Q and the works of Jason Robert Brown. 

From Untitled Opening Number, Monkeys and Playbills, and An Original Musical which featured Huntley voicing a foul-mouthed sock puppet in Jeff's (played by Elliot) imagination. And oddly enough, the sock does have a point that original musicals that are neither a jukebox nor based off a book, film etc are few and far between these days...

Because of all the references, I'm going to say that I would not advise this one as a gateway show (that is don't introduce it to someone who is unfamiliar with either musical theatre, or music theory), as these references will go right over their heads. 

Now the main goal is to get the show played at the theatre festival, and it could have ended there; but [title of show] goes further than that as Hunter and Jeff's show gets more and more successful. 

We get to see how the creative process changes as shows transfer to try-out to Off-Broadway to eventually Broadway; tensions build, and Hunter in particular (played by Huntley) gets conflicted over staying true to his and Jeff's originality and creativity over, to be blunt, what sells tickets. 

It's quite a sudden tonal shift that we do not expect at first. But it's the much needed solo from Jones' Heidi A Way Back to Then that grounds the piece back down, and the affirmation of being "Nine People's Favourite Thing rather than one hundred people's ninth favourite thing" that makes it work and feel a complete piece. 

Credit: https://www.instagram.com/lambertjacksonproductions/

For musical theatre nerds like me, this show is an original breath of fresh air. And a reminder of how important creativity is - not just for the industry, but also for our mental wellbeing. To relax and unwind we do some art, bake banana bread, play MarioKart or binge some Netflix. For exercise, whatever that may be, a lot of us put some music on. 

What I have realised while writing this, is that THIS is one of the best examples of a show to say SCREW YOU (or stronger) to the Fatima adverts. To certain people *cough cough* who think that people in the creative and Events industries aren't of any real value and can go retrain at the drop of a hat as a financial consultant. HELL NO!!! 

In fact, this is even discussed in it's own way IN THE SHOW, as Russell's Susan is desperate to leave her office job and to be able to earn enough for something SHE ENJOYS DOING!

With [title of show], LJ Prods have made another Home Run. They've not announced their next project yet (aside from another in-person run of Songs For A New World next year); but let's see what happens next. 

Because their innovation and creativity to bring us theatre during the middle of a pandemic is the tonic we need at the moment.