Heathers

I think I must be getting old, let me explain. Last night I really wanted to love Heathers, after all I loved the film in all its subversive glory and I love musical theatre. It should have been a total shoe in surely.

So why am I feeling so old? Well let’s start with the positive news. Heathers the musical is a full on display of energy and talent, there isn’t a weak member of the cast on that stage. The choreography is sharp and precisely executed, the band are hot, the set is clever and the transitions work well from scene to scene and the whole is beautifully lit. It sounds good doesn’t it? Of course it does and that winning combination should be good. So why, in my view, does it fall flat?

Let me start with the sound, god it was loud, really loud, and combine that with a vocal style possibly better suited to a rock gig, it was ear burstingly loud. As a consequence the lyrics were for the most part lost. I felt sad that the creators’ hard work was thrown away for the sake of a style decision. That whole “theatre as a gig” style, so excellently displayed in shows like Six, was here deployed to so little success. It did the cast and the audience no favours. Of course judging by the rapturous applause I was in the minority thinking this. I look forward to seeing many members of this clearly talented cast  in a show where I can really enjoy those talents.

On then to the play, Forgive me if I say that Heathers, a film about bullying, sex and teenage suicide is not exactly the stuff of musicals, and yes I know that Rent covers many of those dark topics and more – but not as a comedy.

The dark subject matter, guns, murder, bullying are dealt with in a way that lacks so many things, no empathy, no morals, little regret or remorse, in fact rather than being a moral fable it is an immorality tale and any sense of a positive message is tucked so far from view that the audience seem to be applauding and laughing at the hideous behaviour of the characters portrayed.

So maybe yes I am getting old, maybe I am not in the target audience for Heathers, but at the end of the evening, despite the massive talent on that stage, I went home sad.

Theatre Royal Brighton

26 October

[rating: 2.5/5]