Bromance: The Dudesical continues at The Other Palace, London until 24 October 2018.
Star rating: three stars ★ ★ ★ ✩ ✩
Director Sarah Redmond and producers Daisy Smith (for How Very Productions) and Max Barraclough have assembled a talented cast of five for the London premiere of Kyle Ewalt and Michael Ian Walker’s musical Bromance: The Dudesical.
We are introduced to three long-time friends – Bros, Dick (Robbie Smith), Tom (Cellen Chugg Jones) and Harry (Richard J Hunt). They hang out together, they drink together and their existence is intertwined. This is real friendship – this is Guyville.
Enter Marty (Joshua Gannon), a newcomer to Chicago. Rather nerdy and totally friendless until he forms an unlikely relationship with Dick. Tom and Harry are naturally jealous that an outsider has muscled in and things begin to change.
Bromance is about ‘straight’ male friendship, bonding and having fun. Boys being boys. Gannon convincingly demonstrates Marty’s journey from friendless geek to Bro. Smith brilliantly portrays the rather feckless Dick; Jones gives an energetic and rather charming performance as Tom who is engaged to the rather dominating Colleen, one of several female roles effectively played by Esme Laudat. Hunt is impressive as Harry and delivers two outstanding numbers, ‘Chilli Cheese Fries’ and the rather moving ‘Heartburn’. The energetic and hard-working cast deliver 100%.
Redmond has done a good job making this fast-paced show work in such a confined space. The four-piece band led by musical director Andy Smith with Lewis Turner, Rob Levy and Gary Cubberley were first class.
It is always refreshing to see new work and one must applaud Smith and Barraclough for bringing this to the UK.
On press night the sound balance was not always adequate and often the spoken word was inaudible. No doubt Redmond will sort this during the run.
The biggest problem for this production is identifying its audience. The press release states Bromance will convert even the most die-hard of ‘dudes’ to musical theatre but that is unlikely. The characters are uncouth and you don’t really warm to them, so towards the end of the show when the relationships are crumbling you feel very little for them.
You can’t imagine British men enjoying the same intimacy with their mates and you can’t imagine women finding these boys appealing in any shape or form. However, as a piece of entertainment, it is a reasonably fun night and it may pick up a cult following – it will be interesting to see what happens to this show in the future.
Helena Howard
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