A frothy, enormously fun and sweet-natured musical with vocals that are even better than the Broadway version.Rating
Unmissable!
It’s easy to be sceptical of musicals based on famous books, and there have been a fair few clunkers in the past couple of years. The Great Gatsby tried to be a light-hearted comedy thriller to the point where audiences were laughing when characters didn’t survive, while The Time Traveller’s Wife mishandled a tragic element so badly that it’s astonishing it ever made it into the West End.
Thankfully, Little Women doesn’t fall in with that wayward group. Produced for the first time in the US in 2001, it feels a lost classic movie musical, something which would have been a huge hit in the 1960s with its sweeping score and pro-feminist message. It may not cover all of the aspects of Louisa May Alcott‘s semi-autobiographical tale, and perhaps spends a little too much time as a rom-com, but otherwise, it’s superb material indeed.
Directed by Georgie Staight, the staging here is inventive, especially when we witness Jo (Honey Gawn-Hopkins) reading out her stories, and they’re acted out behind her. And while the set may look simple, it’s used in consistently imaginative ways. It’s a fast-paced affair too, packed with many memorable songs, and the cast has such astonishing voices that it actually improves upon the Broadway Cast Recording.
This is a student production, performed at the luxurious Susie Sainsbury Theatre in the Royal Academy of Music. Sometimes having a cast that consists only of young actors can be problematic, especially when someone is asked to play a character twice, triple or even quadruple their actual age. But Gawn-Hopkins and her onstage cohort are so good that I completely forgot this wasn’t a professional West End production. Vocally, they exhibit a selection of some of the most beautiful singing I’ve ever heard, but they also come across as experienced thespians.
It’s a joyful work too, celebrating the lives of the March sisters and the manner in which they had to navigate their way through society in a time when women were often treated poorly. When the play touches on the book’s darker themes, it does so with a light touch, but still manages to be impactful. Perhaps this isn’t a scenario where the audience openly weeps at the loss of a beloved character, but it still explores the resilience of the sisters and their support for each other in genuinely touching ways.
This is a remarkable cast performing an adorable show, and the combination is intoxicating. The highest compliment I can give it is that it feels like an acclaimed West End production at fringe theatre prices, and my only disappointment relates to this being a very short run, so I won’t be able to see it a second or third time.
Music by Jason Howland
Lyrics by Mindi Dickstein
Book by Allan Knee
Choreography by Tara Young
Musical Direction by Madeleine Baron
Directed by Georgie Staight
Little Women runs at the Royal Academy of Music until Sunday 14 June.
