10:06am Wednesday 30th May 2012
By Alison Phillips
IT’S a rare treat to be in at the start of something truly original.
Revolution! The Musical has been in development for over a year, and this greatly extended version, touring before heading to Edinburgh for a three-week festival run in August, has some stunning songs and characters.
At the heart of the show is a love story, and Ivan and Adela’s romance, played out against a backdrop of both physical and social revolution, delights.
Jessica Lucy, as Adela, turned in a soulful performance in Melksham on Friday night, while Jeremy Garner’s Ivan matched her in devotion, although at times I felt he he struggled too hard with the acoustics at Melksham Assembly Rooms to show his true quality as a singer.
Musically the stars of the show for me were the younger male members of the cast: The Mostar Diving Club, where they sing of their love for their home city, really stood out, and Daniel Falber, as Jakob, produced a spine-tingling death scene which tore at the heartstrings.
The show’s Corsham creators, Nicholas Keyworth and Michael Wilkinson, have balanced the drama with comedy beautifully with the creation of Resula and Becir, a goodtime couple determined to make the most of what comes their way.
The timeline of the story gets a little confused on occasion, but it has that essential element, songs you remember afterwards: I still had snatches of Diving Club and the triumphant Dawn of a New Day running through my head 24 hours later.
Comparisons with Les Mis are inevitable: maybe they should invite Cameron Mackintosh to Edinburgh.
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