Style of the City’s Angharad Thomas reviews Willy Russell’s musical, Blood Brothers at The New Theatre, in Cardiff city centre.
After a long day at the office, there is nothing better than unwinding and watching a production at The New Theatre, Cardiff. Although, I began my evening at Cardiff’s newest hangout, Honest Burger.
Upon arrival, I was greeted by friendly staff who explained their tasty menu to us in detail. There are plenty of options to chooses from, from their meet or plant-based burgers and delicious rosemary salted chips. We opted for the classic Honest burger, with a refreshing ‘Botanic Garden’ cocktail and a sweet ‘Been There, Brewed That’ ale.
Honest Burger is currently collaborating with Fairtrade drinks maker karma Cola, by creating and selling the Good Karma burger. Every Good Karma burger and Karma Cola sold, the company will donate money to the Foundation that supports the growers, farmers, and their families. Previously, Honest Burger raised £20,000 for the charity!
After our hearty meal, we ventured to The New Theatre, excited to see the award-winning musical of Blood Brothers, that tells the captivating and moving tale of twins who, separated at birth, who grow up on opposite sides of the tracks, only to meet again with fateful consequences.
The cast was excellent and it was clear that they have worked incredibly hard to achieve the tone-prefect performance. Every actor that played a child in the first act did a superb job of portraying their age through their physicality, which clearly showed the audience how old they were in each scene, despite minimal costume change.
The staging was often quite simple but very effective, varying from Mrs. Johnstone street to Mrs. Lyons living room in the first act, to the countryside and town in the second act.
This production stared Grammy Award-nominated and actor Lyn Paul as Mrs. Johnstone, who portrayed the character perfectly; she enabled the audience to believe and sympathise with her decision to give one child away, in hopes for him to have a better future than she could ever offer.
However, truly outstanding performances came from Alexander Patmore and Joel Benedict, who played Mickey and Eddie (the two brothers). Both actors brought incredible energy to the stage that made the audience laugh and cry with tears. The entire cast truly deserved the standing ovation they received.
Blood Brothers will be at The New Theatre until Saturday 28th of September 2019.
For more information or to book your tickets, visit www.tickets.newtheatrecardiff.co.uk
