Your Lie in April: The Musical in Concert – Theatre Royal Drury Lane

Picture: Mark Senior

Your Lie in April: The Musical in Concert at Theatre Royal Drury Lane, London.

Star rating: five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Like last year’s Death Note: The Musical, Your Lie in April has a long history in Japanese media and a dedicated fanbase. However, at its core is a beautiful love letter to the power of music that is universal and requires no prior fandom to enjoy. In fact, this performance’s attendees of dedicated manga fans and musical theatre connoisseurs were brought together beautifully, with both groups equally moved and delighted by this new adaptation.

A lot of the team from Death Note: The Musical were back for Your Lie in April. The Toho co-production boasts music from legendary composer Frank Wildhorn, lyrics by Carly Robyn Green and Tracy Miller, and a book by Riko Sakaguchi (with the English language book by Rinne B Groff). It tells the story of the young Kōsei, a former piano prodigy whose mother’s death has left him unable to hear the music he makes. A talented violinist called Kaori is introduced to him through his friends Tsubaki and Ryota, and as Kōsei grapples with his growing affection for her, he rediscovers his ability to play.

The play is alternately light-hearted and emotionally devastating, but always very human. Unlike Death Note, Your Lie in April is grounded firmly in the real world of high school music competition and emotions, yet its romanticising of music itself lends it a fantastical quality that is just as transportive as the most elaborate fantasy. The spectre of illness and death haunts the piece, and as the piece works towards the tragedy of its ending, it would take a rock of a human to not be touched.

This emotional intensity is strengthened by the piece’s sublime score. Wildhorn explores the length and breadth of the pop musical theatre idiom while interpolating classical figures and references that add depth and aural interest. Director Nick Winston’s staging for this “concert” presentation was perfect throughout, with its simple beauty creating an intimacy that allowed us to bond with the characters – even in the cavernous Theatre Royal Drury Lane.

Having said that, however, in the big group numbers like ‘The Beautiful Game’, we were moved to imagine how impressive a spectacle this show could (will) be on a larger scale. Whatever the future for this show, whatever the budget and whatever the theatre, whether the most polished Broadway presentation or an amateur high school auditorium, this is a phenomenal piece of writing that will delight all lucky enough to attend.

There is no doubt that the strength of the story and music would shine through with any performers, but this all-star cast of incredibly talented actors undeniably elevated the presentation to another level. Zheng Xi Yong played Kōsei with the requisite charming gawkiness and arguably provided the highlight of the show with a masterful live piano recital. Rumi Sutton’s Kaori was given enough personality and tragic backstory to lift her beyond the manic pixie dream girl trope, and Sutton’s phenomenal vocals and sensitive performance were remarkable.

Elsewhere, Rachel Clare Chan and Dean John-Wilson balanced out the tragedy surrounding the leads with endlessly charismatic performances as Tsubaki and Ryota, while the legendary Joanna Ampil provided steely gravitas as Kōsei’s departed mother. The ensemble were a tight group who complemented the main cast perfectly. Special shoutouts must go to Lauren Chia and Ernest Stroud whose comic double act as aspiring pianists in awe of Kōsei was reliably hilarious throughout the show.

For those who had their doubts, rest assured: Your Lie in April works brilliantly as a musical. The success of the original media is an intimidating hurdle, but this adaptation expertly remains faithful enough to the source so as to not disappoint fans, but is also so professionally produced, directed and performed that it will appeal to anyone who has ever felt a human emotion. Not only this, but the brilliant score is also destined for repeated playing in the earphones of musical theatre lovers everywhere. This is the strongest debut of a new piece of large-scale musical theatre writing London has seen in a long time. Keep a look out for this one.

Ian Bowkett