Thomas Aikenhead? Who the Fuck is he? (The allure of Music in Theatre)
Music. We all love it. In fact, we can’t get enough of it and it doesn’t matter which music it is a lot of the time because naturally we all have different tastes. Soul. Disco. Indie. Metal. I could go on and on but you get the picture. Whatever floats your boat, lights your light bulb or whets your whistle the fact of the matter is that we all have our own special relationships with music as a medium. Apart from those weird fuckers who claim they never listen to it and they hate it. Those people are scum. Strange, strange sub-human scum. But let’s leave them out of it for now and address the only people who matter (that’s you, the ones who appreciate music).
As a former Drama student, theatre and acting are my passion and I love it. I love going to the theatre to support new writing, up and coming companies and everything in between but one thing that has piqued my interest over the last 12 months is when music and theatre smash together, often to create something truly fantastic that captivates it’s audience and puts an interesting spin/approach on the way we view theatre. If you can do that effectively then you have the audience in the palm of your hand. I should also point out then when I say this I’m not talking about musicals either. Take a seat Jesus Christ Superstar, you too Les Mis... Don’t even think about it “The Sound of Music”, I SAID TAKE A FUCKING SEAT LLOYD WEBBER! I’M SERIOUS! Now, it’s not that I don’t like musicals, I’m massively partial to a good musical with Les Mis and the sound of music being two of my favourites actually. Jesus Christ Superstar not so much but such is life.
No, what I’m talking about is a piece of work that in its bare bones is theatre but it uses original music and lyrics in order to enhance and constructively add to it and normally the cast, or at least of them, will be musically gifted as well as being able to act. Two weeks ago I dusted myself off and decided a trip to the theatre was in order, so I bounced in to town and picked up two tickets for the same night. I came home, got showered, had some tea, whipped out my theatre going outfit (which consists of a wooly hat, leather gloves, a scarf, a polar neck over a skin tight plain black t-shirt, a pair of desert boots and a pair of dark blue cords on my bottom half) and I was ready to hit the theatre. The play was called ‘I am Thomas’ and was an ensemble piece based around a man named Thomas Aikenhead who was the last man to be hanged for blasphemy. The company had thought of everything. Accordions? They had them. Piano? You bet! A witty song about the title character? Of course. A solid plot? Nah you’re alright.
You see, the thing is this show was very good in a lot of ways, it had some great music and excellent character work, as well as a singer who absolutely blew me away but not even that could disguise the fact that there was absolutely no substance to the piece. Yes, it could be argued that, that was the point of the play and I’m all for entertaining theatre that doesn’t necessarily have to have a meaning or a specific point but this got me thinking about how easy it is to draw people in with Music. Take ‘Dead Dog in a Suitcase (and other love songs)’ a similar venture from a little theatre company called ‘KneeHigh’. I went to see that and I absolutely loved it. It was an amazing spectacle with a fantastic cast and the set was incredible. It blew me away when I first saw it and I couldn’t get enough of it, I even saw it twice! So, I’ve sat and tried to understand what it was that made me love it so much and do you know what it was? You’ve guessed it, the songs. The songs were brilliant. They were sometimes witty, sometimes sad but always imaginative and emotionally charged. They really drew me and the rest of the audience in and had us right where they wanted us, we were lapping it up out of their dirty little hands and the bastards knew it. Did it have a plot? Well yeah it did to be fair but not an especially strong one with an end point that has been touched on a thousand times over but that didn’t matter because the music had me by the balls and I was loving it (in a strictly non-sexual way).
I wasn’t quite as captivated by ‘I am Thomas but the music was probably the best thing about it and it certainly used that to its advantage and you know what? Fair enough. I have massive respect for them because, much like Knee High did, they’ve played to their strengths and that should be commended. The first act especially was very entertaining but it limped over the finish line for me. Does that mean it was bad and nobody enjoyed it? Of course not. I guess what I’m trying to say is, both the plays that I’ve mentioned could be seen as extremely average pieces of work... until you add the music that is. Then, what they become is something else entirely, they become some sort of ‘suped’ up hybrid that has audiences chomping at the bit and surely that is something that needs to be appreciated. The power of music to grab hold of something average and make a true spectacle out of it. If nothing else, that certainly deserves a massive amount of respect.
So crack on lads and ladies, you’re alright after all!
