Play Review
"Once is not enough"
It was a cold night in London’s West End and upon entering the Phoenix Theatre, the atmosphere shifted to one of light chuckles from men and women, and the thick clink of beer glasses. The room was busy with mixed accents ringing with good spirits despite the empty seats. My sister and I had dressed up after warnings from our parents that ‘off-Broadway’ still meant theatre attire was necessary. I slipped in some earrings, my sister wore heels, my mother donned her pearls and my father reconsidered his best clogs. English to his core, my father.
The building reeked of rich wood and the grandness of the interior abolished past images of the lit cigarettes and gum stains that featured outside.
Amongst the Italian-inspired décor – with its red seats, carpets and curtains and tall golden engravings spiraling around the auditorium – stirred European lilts and my own Australian drawl. The new arena provided an intense immersion for my young untraveled self. And when we first heard the Czech lead speak, the audience welcomed the voice into our midst.
In the thousand-seated theatre, “Once” – a musical based on the film of the same name – depicted a young Czech woman and a man writing and producing ballad love songs on a small shared piano in early 2000s London. A minimal cast played effervescent characters; both young and old delivered compelling lines and the voices rung strong as they conveyed secret feelings for one another in poetic verse. It was directed by talented John Tiffany and produced in association with New York Theatre Workshop.
Enda Walsh’s award winning stage adaption combines Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova’s intense original music with a witty and endearing tale of love, passion and chasing your dreams.
David Hunter (‘Guy’) has been with the company since July 2013, understudying and providing musical accompaniment. His slide into the character’s essential rawness and edge was particularly admirable. The ruggedly handsome and talented lead initiated the typical story of a boy and a girl with help from his
West End veteran (after portraying Baby in Dirty Dancing at the Piccadilly Theatre) co-star Jill Winternitz (as ‘Girl’). Hunter was able to convey Guy’s new lease on life intermixed with his feelings of love. In numbers like ‘When Your Mind’s Made Up’ and ‘Gold’, his vocal power and range shone as with the memorable reprisal of ‘Falling Slowly’ with Winternitz.
The stage doubled as a working bar, the audience became its intermission patrons, and the opportunity to share a beer and gab with the actors arose when the curtain came down. Chairs surrounded the bar and the actors remained onstage playing musical instruments when they were not in a scene.
The songs were crafted to suit low budget platforms and the voices were strong, wavering only when the story called for it, and enthralling always.
Natasha Katz lit the atmospheric set, lending it charm alongside versatility. The drama was seen from all perspectives, reminding audiences that love and life is fragmented and messy. Katz was key in highlighting the subtle and poetic nature of love on a stage where music and storytelling are everything. She established for us the emotional connection between character and book, particularly Girl’s breakdown following ‘The Hill’ as she struggles with deep feelings for Guy and her family commitments.
Act II’s visual use of subtitles to bridge the differences between Czech and English is efficacious in creating one of the show’s most heart-wrenching moments. We are privy to Girl’s personal thoughts and watch on as Guy is left in the dark and disappointingly alone.
Skeptics questioned whether the adaption would appeal to London audiences. They worried the sad, anti-climactic story about broke musicians in Dublin would be enjoyed only by its cult-indie following. Slowly, however, the warm and jubilant media response ultimately introduced a new audience to musical theatre. It became known that there was something beautifully delicate in the West End. Something not to be disregarded in favour of the glitzier, louder, formulaic musicals adorning stages everywhere else. Wary newbies such as myself were quickly put at ease as we realised how welcome to the unfamiliar territory we were. After this show it feels like you’ve been through something so
intimate that just watching the two replicating love exhausts you. It leaves you overcome with an emptiness you feel when the immense affection you witnessed was dashed by Girl’s sense of responsibility.
For weeks afterwards the little tune of “Falling Slowly” played around and around in my head. And every couple of months or so, I hear the soft lyrics in the melodies of other songs and I get to remember the feeling of being amongst that incredible atmosphere again.
Image credit: "Once: The Musical" 2012.