BLOOD BROTHERS. Two-act musical drama by Willy Russell. Directed by Darryl Spijkers. Music Director Kathy Lin. Set Zanodean Cassiem. Sound Ashley Pitout. Lighting Ramsey Lotter. Choreography Nicolette Fernandes. Presented by Carnavals of the Heart Dramatic Society. At Artscape Arena, from Wednesday to Saturday February 11.
Sheila Chisholm
Mixing blood from deliberately cut wounds is a centuries-old custom of bonding. That’s the theme of Willy Russell’s dramatic/tragic musical, as he explores whether it’s ‘nature or nurture’ that makes us …
Through lilting song (Marilyn Monroe, My Child, Easy Terms, Tell Me It’s Not True), dance and dialogue, this musical relates to twins who were parted at birth – Mickey Johnston (Liam Walsh) and Eddie Lyons (Jordyn Linklater), who later at seven unexpectedly meet. Without knowing their relationship, and growing up in diametrically opposite social structures, their connection is so immediate they swear eternal brotherhood.
Their separation came when their impoverished single parent Mrs Johnston (Michelle Galloway), finding she’s expecting twins, is persuaded by her wealthy, childless employer Mrs Lyons (Anne Walsh) to give her one of her babies after their birth. Pretending to her husband (Nick Plummer) that Eddie is hers, Mrs Lyons is so paranoid the brothers may meet she fires Mrs Johnston. She later forbids Eddie to go near where the Johnston’s live. When she finds he has, her paranoia becomes extreme.
A ghostly, creepy character
Set in 1962 in a dreary Liverpool council area, Blood Brothers begins with Mrs Johnston quietly standing in a spotlight. Near her are two bodies, surrounded by police. The Narrator (Garth Kitching) steps forward to ask: “Did you hear the story of the Johnston twins?” He is a ghostly, creepy, supercilious character, who links the tragedy between brothers, their girlfriend Linda (Nicolette Fernandes) and their mothers. Mickey (Liam Walsh) deserves his recent Best Actor nomination. As a lisping Liverpudlian with unkempt hair and tatty clothes, a trouble-maker playing cops and robbers with his toy gun, he tumbled, jumped and bounded about like street kids do. What a contrast to neat, well mannered, poshly-spoken Eddie (Jordyn Linklater). Yet they form a life-long attachment, broken only when they both fall for their childhood friend Linda (Nicolette Fernandes).
Fernandes slotted comfortably into her role as Linda. From an energetic, gum-chewing rough-and-ready dancing member of the school gang, she grew her character through the teenage years into a complex woman in love with both Mickey and Eddie.
Although it seemed odd, cash-strapped Mrs Johnstone dressed more elegantly than wealthy, Mrs Lyons. Michelle Galloway’s excellent diction and modulation expressed the depth of her love for her large brood, and the pain of a deserted woman and the guilt when debt forces one to give away a child. A stellar performance.
Led by Kathy Lin, the four-piece band brought to Willy Russell’s music the differences in emotional value between the role players. So too did the 16-member cast passionately sing and dance, with Fernandes’ lively choreographed routines coping well in the Arena’s limited space.
Speaking of which, why, in a 139-seater theatre, is it necessary to mouth mic? These singularly ill-fitting pieces too often distorted the sound. None-the-less, Darryl Spjikers’ Blood Brothers staging provides thought-provoking portrayals of the psychologically diverse perspectives between working and middle class lives and values.
Where and when: The Artscape Arena, Foreshore, 11 February to 14 February
Book: www.computicket.co.za
WS
