The Lowry, Salford- until Saturday 13 April 2019.
Reviewed by Joseph Everton.
5*****
Blood Brothers, the creation of Willy Russell, is undoubtedly the show that kindled my love of theatre. With humble beginnings as a school play in the early 80’s, Blood Brothers continues, nearly forty years on, to perfectly tell a tale of the crippling unfairness of class in this country and the social problems inextricably linked with living in poverty. Last night at the Lowry, twenty years after my first Blood Brothers experience, I laughed and inevitably, I cried, but I loved each and every minute of the performance which closed with an audience wiping away tears and climbing to their feet in appreciation.
The well-known story follows Mickey (Alexander Patmore) and Eddie (Joel Benedict), twins separated after their birth because of a struggling mother’s inability to support them both financially. When their mother, Mrs Johnstone (Linzi Hateley) is asked – some would say coerced – to give one of her twins away to well-to-do employer, Mrs Lyons (Paula Tappenden), who cannot bear children, she reluctantly accepts for the good her family. What follows is a harrowing tale of a forbidden friendship between two boys who do not know that they are brothers and the differences in their upbringing that eventually lead to tragedy. However, the show is by no means depressing or maudlin. It inspires a powerful emotional response by being relatable, believable, endearing and often laugh-out-loud funny.
In a time of austerity, job losses and with television openly mocking those on welfare with shows like ‘Benefit Street’, Willy Russell’s writing helps its audience to empathise with the plight of Mrs Johnstone and her family, stuck on the bread line, struggling to make ends meet and, eventually and almost inevitably, turning to crime and struggling with mental health issues. When Mrs Johnstone orders more than she can afford in from the catalogue in a bid to treat her children, you are made to feel angry at the system that has failed her, not at her poor decision making. When Mickey makes life-changing mistakes and struggles with depression, you can, again, empathise with him because of brilliant writing and the excellent character development in scene one, where her children and their friends play in the streets around their home.
Both Patmore and Benedict play their parts so endearingly that you are made to feel genuine frustration at their plight. Alexander Patmore is a stand out performer, playing a convincing seven-year-old Mickey and then later, a chronic depressive struggling with the effects of unemployment, poor mental health and a seven-year prison sentence. Benedict switched between entirely different characters with ease and class.
For me, Blood Brothers is a five star show with an increasingly relevant story that does far more than just entertain. It is and was brilliant.