Book, music, and lyrics: Willy Russell
Director: Bob Tomson & Bill Kenwright
Blood Brothers is an emotion packed drama which leaves plenty of room for laughs. The production cleverly highlights Willy Russell’s timeless words in his ever-present commentary on class, but creatively it doesn’t seem to experiment far beyond what is safe and comfortable.
Mrs Johnstone is a young and pregnant single mother with seven children to feed on her small cleaning job’s salary. When she discovers she’s having twins she can’t afford to care for, her wealthy employer, Mrs Lyons, offers to help. Striking a deal, she takes one of Mrs Johnstone’s babies, solving her problem of being unable to have children. It has been said that if twins separated at birth ever learn they are twins, they will meet a fatal end. Fate has been set into motion, and there’s no turning back.
Though the impact of each of the cast’s individual gut-punch performances would not be lost on theatre lovers and casual theatre-goers alike, its only problem was that it never surpassed the feeling of being ‘good’. Somehow, the immense talent in the cast felt like it was competing for the spotlight. Instead of forming a synergy in the production, it has a flatline effect. The dominating positive feature of the performance was clever use of the stage and lighting design, rather than its actors.
The set was a street of terraced houses with a more isolated, ornate-looking building on the opposite side. Especially in the second act when more scene changes were needed, large set pieces were lowered onto the stage or pushed out of doorways to seamlessly create immersive locations at a fast pace. A stone wall as an accent to the ornate house becomes an expansive driveway to a middle class house, billboards from the top of the stage show the headlines of a decrease in jobs to accent Just Another Sign of the Times, and a beautifully painted landscape of Liverpool in the background for inner city scenes are just some highlights of the immersive and ever shifting set design.
The lighting, by Nick Richings, is consistently successful throughout the show. Sudden shifts isolate one character on the stage, lined lighting patterns make them look trapped in a prison of their own actions. Lighting also added a layered effect to the sets, creating dappled shadows on the houses to create the appearance of light coming through the trees, which were just out of view.
Though the actors were wrestling for the spotlight, it was stiff competition since each actor brought a dynamic performance to the stage. Kristofer Harding, as The Narrator, gives a stunning vocal performance, especially in The Devil’s Got Your Number. Harding’s voice is full-bodied, filling the stage and easily meeting the lively band in its strength. His chilling presence on stage, always lurking, always coolly observing, is a constant reminder of the hand fate plays in the story. The production takes surprising liberties in having the narrator interact with some of the characters, as judgement or warning. Though impactful, due to Harding’s strong stage presence, it isn’t always clear what is meant to add to the production by these interventions and could just as easily have been left out.
Sean Jones as Mickey gives an incredible performance throughout. The role naturally lends itself to a great range, from how it transitions from childhood to adulthood, but Jones exceeds these expectations and adds more. He gives a detail-oriented performance. As a child, he adds flair to imaginative play, miming things only a child would see, like riding a horse to get around. As an adult, Jones changes his voice impeccably to match the lost exterior of a man who has had to grow up too fast, who life has treated harshly, and who hides behind anti-depressants. Showing the audience an obvious difference between the Mickey who takes them and the one who doesn’t.
At the play’s climax, Mickey’s rage is a highlight moment where lighting, sound, and clever pacing perfectly unite. The music changes, previously a slow ballad getting quieter and quieter, before there is a loud uproar of the band as the stage is drenched in blood red. The shift happens at breakneck speed, but hairs raise on the back of your neck, and you’re shocked into an all-consuming anger with Mickey.
With an incredible set and lighting design, Blood Brothers has an impressively cinematic feel which takes centre stage. Though it feels, on the whole, unfocused from the competition of its performers, it is undeniably a satisfying watch.
Runs until 27 September 2025
