@sohoplace – until 25 November 2023
Reviewed by Claire Roderick
5*****
This new British based on Henry Fraser’s memoir, The Little Big Things, is a musical miracle.
When 17-year-old Henry – a promising rugby player with a bright sporting career ahead – goes on his first lads’ holiday to Portugal, a freak accident causes life-changing injuries. This may sound a bit grim for a musical, but Joe White’s book is warm, wise, witty and full of hope. The master stroke is having two actors play Henry – Jonny Amies is Henry before the accident, bursting with teenage energy and enthusiasm, while wheelchair-using actor Ed Larkin plays Henry after the accident – older and trying to come to terms with events he cannot remember. The struggle to let go of his younger self and forgive while his younger self can’t accept that things can never be the same as they were before the accident drives the plot as Henry tells his story.
To paraphrase Henry, this is no pity party. The two actors build a complex character facing a future that is very different to the sporting glory he and his family had envisaged. Of course, Henry doesn’t go through this alone – his family and their reactions to his accident are written beautifully. If Henry had three sisters, this would be a very different musical, but the three brothers struggle with their guilt over the accident, and their inability to express their feelings feels authentic and produces laughs of recognition. These brothers express their love, when sober, through insults – perfectly normal British siblings. Jamie Chatterton, Cleve September and Jordan Benjamin are all marvellous as the brothers, with the musical numbers allowing the strength of the brothers’ bond to shine through, harmonising and dancing together. Linzi Hateley and Alasdair Harvey play Henry’s parents brilliantly, each portraying their different ways of showing their pain and fear of what will happen to Henry with heartbreaking realism. Hateley’s physical reaction to hearing the news had some of the audience sobbing even before she’d started singing the viscerally tearjerking memory of motherhood, One to Seventeen. As Andrew, Harvey is pitch perfect as a da trying to keep things together for his family, and quietly finding ways to adapt and “fix” things – providing Henry with the means to continue his art. Henry’s physio, Agnes (Amy Trigg) is comedy gold. Also a wheel-chair user, Agnes guides Henry with advice about facing his future and tons of sarcasm. Trigg has some powerhouse lines about attitudes to disability and steals every scene she is in with her sharp comic timing.
Nick Butcher and Tom Ling have crafted a soaring score, full of upbeat infectious numbers with intelligent and memorable lyrics that serve the story well and you will be humming for days after the show. The mix of pop with musical theatre flourishes culminates in the title number, at the very end of the show which has the whole theatre sobbing and clapping along. Mark Smith’s choreography has lots of signing, creating a beautifully fluid movement and unity in the cast onstage. The emotional highs in the big numbers are matched with raised platforms and some glorious aerial work. Paul Gatehouse’s sound design, the sound mixing and acoustics in this incredible theatre are pristine – even with an actor standing right next to you singing their heart out, the sound balance ensures they do not drown out the rest of the cast. Performed in the round, Colin Richmond’s set design needed to be accessible for performers and visible from all areas of the auditorium, and the clever use of blocks and props is excellent. Luke Halls video and Howard Hudson’s lighting design are magical – with the stage lighting up with bright colours as Henry begins to appreciate the pure and simple beauty of things he’d never stopped to consider before and creating the same awe and wonder in the auditorium. Fay Fullerton’s costumes are ordinary noughties wear, but Henry’s subconscious and memories are filled with brightly coloured and flamboyantly dressed people having the time of their lives. Director Luke Sheppard does wonders with this show – obviously he includes confetti cannons at some point, but amongst all the dance routines and technical wonders, the quiet moments between characters are allowed to sit and hit home with perfectly judged beats.
The show is an emotional roller coaster, filled with enough snarky and silly humour so it never strays into sentimentality. Watching Henry come to terms with his future, and his family learning to adapt to his needs in this heightened reality is thrilling and heart-warming. This is one of the most inclusive, open-hearted shows you will ever see – guaranteed to make your feet tap, your tears flow and your heart soar.