The cast of The Commitments at the Palace Theatre, London
The Commitments opened at the Palace Theatre, London on 8 October.
Roddy Doyle’s socially engaged novel The Commitments focuses on young, working-class Dubliners in 1986 who view soul music as a form a release: the music of the people. Doyle’s book was made into a successful film in 1999 and now the piece has made its way to the West End in a production which is part jukebox musical and part social commentary.
The story focuses on Jimmy (Denis Grindel), a passionate soul music fan who wants to bring his friends together in order to create a band. Jimmy is adamant that soul music is for the ordinary people and has the power to change communities. With the support of his fellow soul fan, Joey, they form The Commitments.
The premise of the show is intriguing. Yet, the first 45 minutes of the production suffers from long and disjointed scenes which lead to a lack of engagement with the characters. The opening section which focuses on the bringing together of the band is understandably chaotic; unfortunately Doyle’s witty dialogue and sharp one-liners are lost in the commotion.
However, the production does improve towards the end of Act I, due to an enthusiastic cast who commit to their roles. Killian Donnelly is brilliant as the arrogant lead-singer, Deco. Donnelly works well with the other characters and performs his songs confidently. His rendition of ‘I Heard It Through the Grapevine’ is staged well by director Jamie Lloyd and choreographer Ann Yee, while the confrontational ‘Think’ is humorous as egos clash and tempers flare.
Ben Fox as Joey offers a solid performance as an enigmatic character with a casual relationship with the truth. Grindel shows promise in his lead role as Jimmy. Indeed he anchors the production due to his chemistry with the other actors, and stage presence, in the role of an enthusiastic, despairing and annoyed manager.
The Commitments benefits from a strong cast, yet with more focus in the earlier scenes, and a tighter narrative structure, the show would have been a consistent and entirely engaging piece of work.
Rebecca Gordon
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