I cant imagine why its taken so long for Once On This Island to return to the London stage. Ten years in fact. With a reasonably short running time and toe-tapping calypso, it makes for a fun theatre experience. Its based upon the novel 'My Love, My Love' by Rosa Guy, which has been described by Dante J.J. Bevilacqua as a Caribbean re-telling of Hans Christian Andersen's "The Little Mermaid with a dash of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.". Using the structure of Haiti's rigid class system, it tells the story of a poor girl from one side of the island who falls in love with the aristocrat from the other side whom she nurses back to health.
I can only say thank you to The British Theatre Academy for bringing this magical production back to the London stage. I know a lot of people are put off going to see a 'student production' but rest assured you will not be disappointed. Its also a shame, but a fact, that some people are likely to compare this production to the 2017 Broadway revival. I went into this though with an open mind, ready to be blown away.
And oh was I blown way. What an absolutely stunning show. Yes its not to the scale or quality you'll find on Broadway, but its bloody close. The cast were all amazing with some interesting costume choices. I might add I'm sure the cast will all go on the have successful careers in theatre, if this show is anything to go by. They all worked well with each other and with the audience around them, using the traverse staging to the full. This is a style of staging I always think is tricky for actors, but they seemed to embrace it with open arms. I have to also complement Andrew Exeter on his sublime lighting that really enhanced to fantastic work of the actors but also complemented Lee Proud's direction and choreography.
There are a couple of the actors however that I feel need a special mention. Firstly Aviva Tulley as Erzulie. She has arguably the most touching and emotional songs 'The Human Heart', which occurs almost two thirds of the way through the show. This role was originated by Andrea Frierson-Toney on the Broadway stage in 1990 and by the American sole singer P. P. Arnold when it came to the West End in 1994. In the 2017 Broadway revival this role was played by the legend that is Lea Salonga. Aviva in this production is undeniably absolutely stunning, and in my opinion is just as good as Lea Salonga (if not maybe a little better). I was moved to tears by her rendition of the song and I will forever remember her performance. It was so real and honest the whole audience was silent, captivated by her voice which had a real maturity in its soulfulness. I would recommend the show on her performance of this song alone. Secondly I'd like to mention Chrissie Bhima who plays Ti Moune. Another amazing singer who made this one of the most realistic characters I've seen on stage recently. She has to portray a whole range of emotions in a short space of time and she did this with complete and utter ease. Her voice was refined and powerful, allowing her to bare her emotions to the audience and other cast members with complete conviction. Even when she wasn't the focus of the scene (which was very rare seeing as she was on stage the majority of the time) I couldn't take my eyes off her. These two women, Aviva and Chrissie, will undoubtedly make successes of themselves on the stage and I really wish I get to see them perform again. They wouldn't seem out of place if you threw them onto the West End stage tomorrow.
As for the men in the cast there are two who stood out over the rest These were Sam Tutty and Elliot Gooch as Daniel and Armand respectively. Both were performers who kept my attention and for all for the right reasons. Constantly in character and making themselves stand out in scenes, they also had great chemistry together and you could tell they were having fun on stage. Sam Tutty had charm and a bit of a cheeky twinkly in his eye, while his voice is mature while also having an innocence about it. All of which is perfect for the character of Daniel. He also had great chemistry while performing with Chrissie Bhima and their harmonies where a joy to listen to. I felt it took him a few moments to become comfortable on stage but when he did he never looked back. Elliot Gooch just seemed at home on the stage from the word go, and was a bit of a cheeky chappy throughout. I now know he's graduated from Bird College with a 1st Class BA (Hons) in Professional Dance and Musical Theatre and I'm really not surprised. Before the show started cast members were interacting with audience members, and Elliot trying to sell a couple of girls bamboo was the first to catch my attention (and make me laugh). He seemed completely at ease and was always someone my eye kept going back to. He kept my attention, even when he wasn't a major component of a scene. He just owned that stage.
I also cant really go without mentioning Jonathan Chen in the role of Asaka. Now I'm just going to get it out the way and say it. He's not as good as Alex Newell in the 2017 Broadway revival. Jonathan if your reading this, I'm sorry but its true. But please don't take that as me saying that it wasn't a great performance. That couldn't be further from the truth. It was a wonderfully joyous performance, full of the comedy and over the top sassiness. It took a while for Jonathan to feel comfortable in his role, and many times I could detect he was shaking. Performing in drag can be a very nerve racking experience, take my word for it, and so I wasn't surprised by his nerves. Not to mention he must have had Alex Newell's performance in the back of his head. I'm happy to say though that he hit every note and immediately after his big number, Mamma Will Provide, I could see the relief on his face. It was also nice after the song to see that the rest of the cast seeming to tap him on the back, touch his arm or give a nod as if to say 'Well done. That was great'. I couldn't agree more with them. He had nothing to worry about. My only issue was the makeup. It wasn't over the top enough and just seemed very understated in my opinion. I believe though that Jonathan did the makeup himself, so I hope he will get better as the production continues and as he gains experience. I also had an issue with the costume, not just for Jonathan but all the Gods in fact. I know there is obviously a limited budget for a production such as this, but I feel the Gods could have had a bit more time spent on their design. They all had removable headdresses which at times seemed to become a little cumbersome or they struggled to get them on quickly. Don't get me wrong they were good, but I'm sure they could have been much better if a little more effort had been put into them.
Overall, this is a stunning performance. Not just by the main cast but the whole ensemble, all of whom put 100% into their performances. You could see this by the fun they all seemed to be having and the sweat dripping from them at the end of the show. How marvellous to see a new generation of performers enthusiastic about what they do, who all clearly love it with a passion. I hope they never loose that. My only wish now is that Once On This Island transfers to the West End, bringing some on the current cast with it. I know that I have seen stars of the future today.
You don't have long, as the show is only running at Southwark Playhouse until 31st August.
To purchase tickets to the show, or to find out more information, please click here.
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