The annual visit by the collaborative production of Showdown Theatre Arts of Guildford and Baltimore School for the Arts from the U.S.A. is eagerly anticipated by those of us who have so enjoyed these joint efforts by 15 students of each school; this is the third year that this cooperation has been held at the Nomad Theatre, and the ninth year when the students have performed shows in the U.K. Last week we were entertained by a wholly British musical which meant that the American performers had to create and maintain genuine English accents, instead of vice versa, which they achieved with only an occasional lapse into Irish; to the onlooker it was impossible to know which nationality was playing a part. The extensive (and free) programme indicated that most of the actors are destined for a professional stage life. It is a pity, though, that it did not list the songs used.
‘Our House’ is a musical with music and lyrics by Madness and a book by playwright Tim Firth. The show features songs from the band, and was named after one of their popular hit singles. Although wildly popular with cast and audience, it is not my favourite musical. Only two songs (‘Baggy Trousers’ and the title) were familiar to me but there was no doubt that the selection of material was apposite for the on-stage action. The dual story of Joe Casey who, when asked at the age of 16 “which way will you go?”, splits into his alter-egos, Good Joe and Bad Joe (both brilliantly performed by Josh Jones), with both persona finally receiving their just deserts. The story, however, is fairly irrelevant, compared to the exuberant singing and dancing throughout, accompanied by an excellent (if occasionally slightly over-amplified) orchestra. It was greeted with a justifiable standing ovation from excellent audiences each night. We do hope to see more of BSA and Showdown in following years.
Ben