There will be Blood Brothers
If you hate musicals, you’re going to love the Arts Club Theatre Company’s latest musical, Blood Brothers.
So says British dramatist Willy Russell, creator of Blood Brothers.
He’s probably biased, but there are some heavy hitting pundits on his side. For example, the International Herald Tribune called it the greatest musical of the decade; The Spectator called it “unmissable” and someone from The Observer claimed to be “gobsmacked” following its staging.
(It should be noted that I’ve never personally used the word “unmissable” in a sentence. I’m not even sure I knew it was a word. And I haven’t been “gobsmacked” by a stage performance since a red-light ping-pong incident over in Amsterdam back in ‘92.)
Blood Brothers has been around the theatre block. First staged in 1983, its current (extended to 2012) West End revival started in 1988, which makes it one of the longest-running musical productions ever.
It’s also been very successful on Broadway and on tour.
Here’s a snapshot: Loosely based on the 1844 novella The Corsican Brothers by Alexandre Dumas, it’s about twins separated at birth. They grow up unaware of each other living very different lives. One grows up poor; the other, rich. Fate brings them together when they fall for the same woman.
Narrated by John Mann, lead singer of Spirit of the West. And directed by Arts Club acting veterans Sara-Jeanne Hosie and Bob Frazer, who says it “deals with issues that we can all relate to: a recession, class wars, and searching for something in our lives that we feel may be missing, whether that be love, acceptance by loved ones, or a desire for a better life.”
Blood Brothers opens tonight and runs until New Year’s Eve at the Arts Club Theatre’s Granville Island Stage. Tickets $ 29 to $ 49. Visit artsclub.com for more information.
Local news from metronews.ca/vancouver
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