Established in 2018, The Barn Theatre in Cirencester has been entertaining the masses throughout the lockdown and predicts a loss of £250,000 as a result of its, hopefully, temporary closure. With shows streamed online, since fairly early in the lockdown, they have recently started streaming concerts to celebrate the work of British composers of Musical Theatre, as part of the ‘Behind The Barn Door’ series and have been raising donations through their #SaveOurBarn campaign. This time in The Music of,it was composer-singer-songwriter, Finn Anderson.
First, whilst the concert was great, with great variety and diversity, I was slightly aggravated by the platform as, throughout the hour-long concert, I was subjected to adverts 12 times! Might I suggest that they consider options. Apologies if it is something at my end but I don’t think it is as this hasn’t happened to this excess on other streams. Nonetheless, the concept is great and the set up of the video is of good quality and well-thought out. It is a shame we don’t get to hear from all of the performers in interview form but it worked. Hosted by The Barn’s Producer, Jamie Chapman Dixon, with Finn Anderson present to discuss his work and how some of the performers felt and interpreted the songs we watched them perform, as prerecorded clips, we gleamed insight into his writing style, inspiration and how the performers have been coping with lockdown.
Dixon had come across Anderson in 2013 when he was putting on/had put on a show called ‘Streets’, which we hear a song from later in the stream. First to sing however was Rebecca Jayne Davies (whose credits include 'Half A Sixpence' and 'Jersey Boys') who had randomly met Anderson backstage in The Barn’s wardrobe department during a run of 'Daddy Long Legs', before they worked together there straight afterwards for 'A Christmas Carol'. Whilst researching him, she came across music from ‘Islands’ which he disclosed has an album-in-progress. Whilst discussion covered a song called ‘Hitchcock’, which is the only piece of the stream that is not from a musical, a song of heart-break, that piece was the second piece to be performed, by Nicholas McLean. Davies’s song was ‘Taking On The Government’ from Finn’s musical about an amateur allotment group who are against the local council’s plans to regenerate the area and develop the land - as she says: “so perfectly British”. It is performed in a well-spoken tone and passionate, it wouldn’t be out of place in a Calendar Girls-style show and is vaguely erotic (ish) if that’s how you interpret fertile ground and plenty of room to grow (maybe, just me and my friendship circle).
As mentioned, Nicholas McLean (whose experience includes 'Wicked', 'Avenue Q' and 'The Book Of Mormon') was next with ‘Hitchcock’. Played out like a film, the piece states that the plot can’t be twisted like a Hitchcock film as it's (about) real life. Next was Claire-Mare Hall (who has been in 'The Grinning Man', 'The Wicker Husband') with ‘Use To Say’ from Anderson’s 'A Mother’s Son', an upbeat duet with Rosalind Ford ('Once', 'The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button' and The Barn’s production of 'Just So') - as Nicky Evans was ill - but, as it was recorded, I did wonder whether Hall had to lip sync along to herself but it was a nice performance. Christina Bianco then sang ‘Sophie’s Apocalypse’ - a very apt piece considering the current pandemic. She really got into the part and, apparently, if there world were to end, cynic Sophie would indulge in hot chocolate with everything on it, and a muffin, as opposed to her usual skinny latte and an apple.
Next was Emmanuel Kojo ('Show Boat', 'Oklahoma', 'Girl From The North Country') who sang ‘Garden In My Mind’ from the aforementioned allotment musical which now features rehabilitated ex-offender Neil who finds solace in gardening to help his mental health. Incidentally, Kojo has found the lockdown a godsend as he has found time to reflect and refocus and think about himself and gather his thoughts. Brienne Keller ('Spring Awakening') gave us her rendition of ‘Chip Vn’ from 'The Bow Maker', which features explicit language, as we are made aware of prior to listening, and is around Lara and her experience of nothing going right along with the fact that wood brought from Brazil (hence some Portuguese lyrics) to Scotland is not good enough. Oliver Ormston (who was in 'Back To The Future' as it premiered its tour literally the day before the lockdown started, and has also been in 'The Addams Family' and 'The Book Of Mormon') introduced and performed ‘Snow Storm’ which was also included in Anderson’s musical 'A Mother’s Son', which Anderson was in Chicago prepping for a production of at the start of the lockdown. Sadly the song was cut from the show but Ormston gives a beautiful performance of it, before ‘Strictly Come Dancing' winner Joanne Clifton ('The Rocky Horror Show', 'Flashdance') sings ‘Flick The Switch’ from Finn’s first solo album, which he recorded when he was just 16.
Rising star and Drama School student Ella Young was discovered by Dixon on Twitter and was honoured to duet with Olivier-award-winner Matt Henry MBE for ‘300 Feet’, a love song from Anderson’s 2013 production of 'Streets', set on a roof top, 300 feet in the air, where two lovers are pursuing a secret relationship and both have conflicting views on how/whether to progress to the next step. Finally, we were treated to Danielle Hope (winner of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s search for Dorothy for 'The Wizard Of Oz' and has also been in 'Rock Of Ages', 'White Christmas', 'Les Misérables') who sang ‘Change Of Plan’, where she really got into the character’s head.
I am unsure what order the end ‘credits’ were in and I would have liked all of the cast to be included in the opening ‘holding screen’ but that didn’t distract from the concert which was thoroughly enjoyable. The next concert in this series will be The Music of 'Loserville' writer, Elliot Davis.
Reviewer - John Kristof
on - 26/5/20
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