Almost 30 years after it was first performed, Andrew Lippa and Tom Greenwald's two-hander musical has made it's way to the UK. Having previously been led in earlier productions by Carolee Carmello and Kate Baldwin, the show is now in the hands of a third redhead: the wonderful Rachel Tucker, alongside newcomer Lewis Cornay. The first half centres on brother and sister John and Jen and their childhoods. Following a tragedy, Act 2 follows Jen and her new son John (who she named after her brother.)
The piece has changed setting slightly since it's original outing and spans 1985-2022 (rather than the original 1950-ish to 1990), but its story and score, as far as I understand remain largely the same.
It isn't very often that you get to sit in somewhere as intimate as the Little at Southwark Playhouse and see someone as talented as Rachel Tucker up close, but that's exactly what we are being treated to at the moment.
Tucker (soon to be jetting off back to Broadway to reprise her Olivier-nominated performance in Come From Away) takes Jen on a real journey across the two hours. Starting as a child playing the full range of one character up to being a mother of an college-headed son, her Jen is both head-strong and gentle. It takes until the 11 o'clock number for Tucker's signature belt to really get a time to shine, but 'The Road Ends Here' really is a moment in which she is able to fully let rip and its thrilling to watch.
Lewis Cornay matches Tucker at every turn with his excellent performance too. He slots into the younger side of John very easily, and manages to find all of the comedy that you'd expect to come out of a five year old, but give it some real heart too.
It's a beautifully orchestrated piece, with an orchestra of 4 under the direction of Chris Ma. Lippa and Greenwald's score is expertly played by 3 strings and keys, and it enables it to be care-free to begin with, but then to really drive home the emotional numbers. Be under no illusion that this musical is light and fluffy; there are really adult themes of domestic violence, war and loss at play here.
Whilst the score itself is a little hit and miss for a good portion of the first half, it really is the two performances that elevate the material above and beyond.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
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