Everybody’s Talking About Jamie
It’s Christmas, in case you hadn’t noticed, and Theatre Royal Brighton have opened their seasonal stocking with a sensational feel-good show that will warm your heart. Unless of course you are a heartless bigot, the kind that most happy and liberal Brightonians will hate and be embarrassed by. But then again maybe the bigots should be forced to watch this piece of beautiful, inclusive and empowering story telling.
This is the story of Jamie New, a sixteen year old Sheffield boy who knew exactly what he wanted, and the people around him who helped make it happen. It’s a true story, Jamie made a brilliant documentary with the BBC about 11 years ago and this staged musical version of that story has gone on to receive great acclaim – and rightly so.
This current touring production is as vibrant and shiny as the West End version I previously saw and no doubt much of that is due to the extraordinary talent of Layton Williams, a West End star of the brightest sort, the ubiquitous triple threat. Layton has exactly the right amount of cheeky attitude and heartbreaking vulnerability to make the role work. Here he is joined on stage by a wonderful cast to the very last boy and girl, there’s not a weak member on that stage!
Roy Haylock, AKA Bianca Del Rio, is simply perfect as Hugo/Loco and brings a dark reality to the role in his very first scene. He may be best know for his fierce drag persona and Ru Paul’s Drag Race presence but here he shows that he is a fine actor and singer too.
Shobna Gulati is the earthy plain speaking Ray, the family friend with sass and attitude and it’s a role that finely displays her comic skills and sharp timing. Sharan Phull is wonderful as Jamie’s bestie, Pritti and handles both the compassionate and comedic elements of her role and has a fine voice too. George Sampson has one of the toughest roles to play as the baddie, the bigot and the thorn in Jamie’s side and he does it well, that thorn is certainly a prick that Jamie can do without.
Lara Denning nails the role of Miss Hedge, the long suffering teacher charged with shattering the pupil’s dreams, and she can certainly strut her stuff in those rip off Jimmy Choos.
Finally Amy Ellen Richardson who plays Jamie’s mum Margaret. Margaret is key to Jamie’s story, the fully supporting and accepting parent of a child dealing with difference and never backing down. It’s the real story of a real woman and a lesson to any parent of a child struggling with the challenges of feeling different – no matter what that difference is. It’s a beautiful story and a beautiful role and in that role she gets to sing the best song of the evening, He’s My Boy, which she does perfectly, a fine voice that she is not afraid to allow to falter as she acts every note and every word.
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie is the kind of British Musical that warms my heart, it has the same sensibilities as Blood Brothers, it’s sung with British tonality and accents and played without even nodding towards Americana, a feat that other more famous British writers of musicals seem incapable of doing – and for that it gets my whole-hearted approval.
Andrew Kay
7 December
Theatre Royal Brighton
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