There was a standing ovation and an encore at the launch of new Irish musical Sing Street at the Lyric Theatre in Hammersmith.
The new play is based on John Carney’s 2016 coming of age film that starred Ferdia Peelo- Walsh and Lucy Boynton while the supporting cast included Aidan Gillen, Maria Doyle Kennedy and Jack Reynor.
Revered playwright Enda Walsh takes charge of the adaptation making some changes from the source material and, on the whole, they are changes that work fleshing out and giving more depth to certain characters.
The story is set in 1985. Times are hard in Dublin and the Lalor house is no exception.
Just like in the film the story starts with parents Robert and Penny, played by Lochlann Ó Mearáin and Lucianne McEvoy, sitting their three children Conor, Brendan and Anne, played by Sheridan Townsley, Adam Hunter and Tateyana Arutura, down to update them on the situation.
The family are ‘bollix’d’ financially so Conor will be moved from his fee paying Jesuit school to the CBS.
The CBS comes as a shock to Conor meeting the bully Barry, played by James Jack Ryan (formerly of Coronation Street), and Lloyd Hutchinson’s Brother Baxter who, although not from the outset, turns out to be another and more brutal bully.
Conor’s day improves when he sees Raphina (Grace Collender) hanging around outside the school gates. She says she is a model and to impress her, Conor says she can be in a video for his band. The only problem, of course, is that he doesn’t have a band but that’s something he gets straight to rectifying with his new friend, Darren (Cameron Hogan).
With the band in place, we start to hear familiar songs from the film like Up and The Riddle of the Model, there are also new ones.
Raphina gets her own song, the Kate Bush/ Madonna flavoured Beautiful Disguise that goes into the sadness behind her character. There was always a sadness and mystery behind Raphina’s story and the play sees her actually refer to an abusive former home situation which no doubt explains why she is now in an orphanage.
There is also the new song Outside that is sung by Conor’s brother, Brendan. Some time before the start of the story, Brendan stopped going outside. Although it is only skimmed over on the surface in the film, Brendan’s character is further delved into here.
There is real tragedy in Conor waiting for his brother who said he would come to a video shoot- and no doubt meaning to be there- before his band mates tell him what he knows on one level, ‘He’s not coming’.
Also further developed is the other sibling, Anne. Although she was always outside of Conor and Brendan’s close older brother/ younger brother relationship and their bonding over music, we see here it is the pressure coming on her from their parents and all around that has her working so hard on her architecture studies although it is not her passion.
Another character we get to know differently is Eamon as Conor’s songwriting partner and creative collaborator is actually racked with anxieties brought on by his disciplinarian father.
There is also greater understanding and redemption for the bully character of Barry.
Glasgow’s Sheridan Townsley, acting in his professional debut here, told The Irish World recently that it was his Irish heritage that made the accent come so naturally to him. The greatest compliment we can pay him here is that during the show, it completely slipped our mind that he wasn’t actually from Dublin.
It’s also worth pointing out that although Grace Collender is Irish, Raphina’s inner city Dublin accent is far from her natural Meath speaking voice so it is both central characters that are convincing in accents that are not their own.
The crowd clapped along with the memorable Drive it Like You Stole it at the show’s big climax and even after the cast had taken their bow, the crowd wanted another number.
Anyone looking for a great show will do well to catch this show while it is in Hammersmith and also look out for the names of its young cast in the future.
Sing Street is at the Lyric in Hammersmith until 23 August. For more information and to book, click here.