Aylesbury Waterside – until Saturday 4th February 2023
Reviewed by Julia Spargo
3.5***
North Dublin in the late 1980s. Jimmy Rabbitte is a young music fan, approached by two of his friends who ask for advice on what songs they should perform as a synthesizer duo. Jimmy advises them to ditch modern songs and pick soulful, ageless ones instead. He holds auditions and puts together The Commitments, “the hardest working band in the world”, who reach success within Dublin before imploding due to infighting and ego-clashes.
Roddy Doyle’s jukebox musical is thin on plot, but exploding with great hits. It begins with a Christmas party scene, the cast performing Proud Mary in a drunken karaoke, but what followed was a frenetic twenty minutes of farcical action and very little dialogue. It was almost dizzyingly rushed. There is no doubt the score is fantastic; a collection of Motown and Memphis Soul hits, but for me the female singers who appeared in the first rehearsal scene are what held the show together. Bernie (Sarah Gardiner), Natalie (Maryann Lynch) and the incredible Ciara Mackey as Imelda really captured my attention with the ease of their performance. “Chain of Fools” was outstanding. I couldn’t take my eyes off them. They looked like they were really enjoying themselves, and I felt this was missing from the rest of the cast. Yes, The Commitments is a musical based on in-fighting within a band, but I felt like the connection with the audience was missing. Hit after accomplished hit was belted out, but I was left wanting. The whole show could have done with more dialogue and fewer fight scenes, to ensure the audience understood and cared about the characters. Only during the encore did it all come together for me. James Deegan as Deco really allowed his personality to join him on stage. He was cheeky, funny; there was banter with the audience. The audience were on their feet and loving the favourites “Try a Little Tenderness” and “Mustang Sally”. The cast were performing as a cohesive band and their enthusiasm bounced off the stage.
The set throughout the musical was used to excellent effect; various doors opened to either reveal a bar, Jimmy’s house, or a band rehearsal in a garage. Only five extra musicians were involved; for the most part, all performers were playing their instruments live on stage. James Deegan impressively carried off one number while eating a bag of chips. Everybody left with a smile on their face. As a man in the lift after the show commented to me, “How else would you prefer to spend a Monday night?”