...you can get off of the ground again, it doesn't matter the whole things just a game!
Blood Brothers is a tale of two liverpudlian twins seperated at birth yet their lives become intertwined, ending in inevitable tradgedy. It was Willy Russell's very first musical having previously only written ... Read review
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Advantages: Good storyline, music score, tears and laughs Disadvantages: none
...a game!
Blood Brothers is a tale of two liverpudlian twins seperated at birth yet their lives become intertwined, ending in inevitable tradgedy. It was Willy Russell's very first musical having previously only written plays. It opened at the Phoenix Theatre in London in 1991 and has been playing there ever since.
I have always been a fan of musicals and from a young age accompanied my mum on group trips organised by ... ...have the same birthday become blood brothers. From this point onwards their lives become intertwined with both seeing their ideal in the other. Eddie sees Mickey's freedom and Mickey, Eddie's wealth and opportunities.
In the second half of the play the tone is far more sombre with Willy Russell introducing his political view on the depression and class systems in the 1980s. We see Mickey pulled into a life of dole queues and petty ... more
...you can get off of the ground again, it doesn't matter the whole things just a game!
Blood Brothers is a tale of two liverpudlian twins seperated at birth yet their lives become intertwined, ending in inevitable tradgedy. It was Willy Russell's very first musical having previously only written plays. It opened at the Phoenix Theatre in London in 1991 and has been playing there ever since.
I have always been a fan of musicals and from a young age accompanied my mum on group trips organised by a friend. As a resutl I have seen many of the delights the West End has to offer. having sampled a vast selection I can quite comfortably say this was my all time favourite and I have been back to see it a couple of times dragging many a family member (who I may add all throughly enjoyed it). The story line is simple yet enthralling, the characters endear me, the songs stick in my head and the ending never fails to bring tears to my eyes!
Plot:
Before I give you the summary I would just like to point out that by telling you the ending I am not giving anything away, as the beginning scene is exactly the same as the ending scene so you aldready know what is going to happen from the start.
The musical opens with the haunting song Tell me it's not True sung by a woman standing on the stage in between two dead bodies and introduces the prophecy that if two twins seperated at birth ever find out that they are related they will die.
The first half of the play is very upbeat and fun, and you can quite easily forget the ending you know is coming. It starts with a pregnant woman who discovers that she is having twins but only has enough money to raise one. She makes the heartbreaking decision to give one of them to her childless employer on the condition that no-one must ever know. The Twins are born and seperated, with her employer choosing one and naming it Eddie and the mother Mrs Johnston keeping Mickey.
The two boys grow up on opposite ends of the park, which may as well have been different worlds. Mickey lives in a council house with a family scraping by on "the never never" and Eddie grows up in the affluent part of town surrounded by comfort and security. As young boys they meet and upon discovering they have the same birthday become blood brothers. From this point onwards their lives become intertwined with both seeing their ideal in the other. Eddie sees Mickey's freedom and Mickey, Eddie's wealth and opportunities.
In the second half of the play the tone is far more sombre with Willy Russell introducing his political view on the depression and class systems in the 1980s. We see Mickey pulled into a life of dole queues and petty crime while Eddie continues to prosper. Add to the mix a woman in love with both of them and the two blood brothers begin to fall apart leading us right back to where we started in the opening scene, prepare to be surprised even though you know that this is going to happen.
Set and Music:
The set is very simplistic and leaves a lot to the imagination however I think this lends to the overall feel of the play which is very much centred around a child's imagination, especially in the first half. Navigating from scene to scene is a narrator who serves not only to further illustrate the scene in front of us but to remind us, when things seem to be going well, that life will not always be this way.
The music composed by Jason Howland is outstanding in both it's simplicity and story telling. It's been many years since I have seen this play yet writing this review I am finding myself humming along to the songs that I mention. My personal favourites are "Tell me it's not True", the song depicting a mothers heartache on finding her sons dead, "Easy Terms" which tells of the difficulty of living on the HP and "Kids Game" a fun song about the innocence of youth which contains the lines I have opened my review with, this song is especially poignant with regards to the ending. In my mind there is not a bad song in the musical, the ones mentioned above are merely the ones that I can remember lyrics to as well as tunes!
Overall:
The musical had me enchanted from the beginning, the characters are very easy to relate to as well as the idea that doing what you think is best at the time may not work out in the end. I found myself rooting for both boys to survive everything that life was throwing at them and even the second and third time I had seen it hoping that the outcome would be different. Be prepared for your emotions to shift with the tones of the play, to find yourself laughing and smiling, before the tears begin to well...
Location and Prices:
In London this musical is currently showing at The Phoenix Theatre on Charing Cross Road. The closest tube stations being Tottenham Court Road (on the Central and Northern Line) and Leicester Square (on the Picadilly Line).
Tickets for the show cost anywhere between £17 and £45 this will depend on both which night you go and where you sit in the auditorium. My favourite seats are in the dress circle which are not the cheapest but also not the most expensive seats, I believe they cost about £25, but the view is better than the stalls as the seating is tiered.
For those looking to see this on budget the best time would be a matinee as these tend to be cheaper. Also ask for group discounts if there are a group of people going. Tickets can be booked online, at various ticket vendors around London (these tend to be tiny little shops covered in posters of musicals, plays and events there are a few around Picadilly and Leicester Square) and also at the theatre itself. I'm not sure whether or not buying online or at the ticket vendors means the tickets are any cheaper, so again if you are going on a budget it may be worth checking this out.
As with all West End plays I would recommend booking your tickets as early as you can as performances tend to sell out very quickly. If you don't manage to get tickets during the period you will be in London you can always try Lastminute.com or a similar website, or approaching the theatre on the day to see if they have had any returns. For the returns you may have to wait until up to about half an hour before the performance as mosst people will return any un-used tickets when they arrive at the Theatre to see the show.
I would definitly recommend this play to anyone of any tastes. It is considered family friendly but there are a few choice words included, however the context these are in I would not consider offensive and they are few and far between.
Advantages: Tears and laughter. Disadvantages: None.
...and great performances better than Blood Brothers then somebody please tell me, I would sell my soul to see a better constructed and dramatic musical than this one.
If you haven't guessed I loved this show. This was the show that re-ignited my love of theatre, this was the show that reminded me how good theatre can be but most importantly this was the show which proved you can entertain and comment on social injustices in equal proportion.
The ... ...twins, Mickey and Eddie. Due to her economic circumstances she can only afford to keep one baby, Mickey, while she sells the other to her employer. Thus Mickey is denied the priveledges which Edward grows up with. This of course does not stop the two of them becoming friends and "Blood Brothers" despite not ever finding out that they are truly related. Edward grows up to become a councellor while Mickey joins the dole queue and eventually turns to ...
dchurch 11.12.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Blood Brothers / Phoenix Theatre (London)
Advantages: a fantastic plot, humour, tears, emotions Disadvantages: None
...Charing Cross Road, WC2. Blood Brothers first ever performance was actually at the Albery Theatre on 28 July 1988. The Phoenix Theatre itself opened in 1930 and its first performance was Noel Cowards Private Lives, which ran for 101 nights.
As well as performing at the Phoenix, there have been other showings of Blood Brothers up and down the country, and I also went to see the show with my other sister in Manchester. And if it ever comes back to ... ...make a pact to become Blood Brothers. There is a great scene with Mickey’s brother Sammy and their friend Linda, together with Mickey (who remained with Mrs J), and Eddie (who Mrs Lyons took). Both mothers, having learned of this new friendship, tell the boys they should not play together but this does not stop them from meeting up during their growing up.
Act One ends with the fantastic upbeat song Bright New Day, with Mrs Johnstone and the whole ...
helencbradshaw 28.06.2002 (29.06.2002)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Blood Brothers / Phoenix Theatre (London)
Advantages: Moving, great music, funny Disadvantages: None (apart from cost perhaps)
Blood Brothers is one of my favourite musicals. I first saw it three years ago and I've seen it twice since then and listen to the CD constantly. If you only like happy endings, then this probably isn't for you, but it will make you think, laugh and cry. Wonderful!
LOCATION AND COST:
Blood Brothers' home is the Phoenix Theatre in London (although there is currently also a touring production - I saw it in Cardiff last night). The theatre is on Charing ... ...I love the music for Blood Brothers. Many of the songs use the same music with different lyrics, eg 'My Friend' and 'That Guy'. My favourite songs are 'Shoes Upon the Table' which is sung by the narrator and 'Tell Me its not True' sung by Mrs Johnstone. Some of the songs are very upbeat, especially 'Kids Game' and some are very haunting and sad, like 'Tell Me its not True'. THE EXPERIENCE:
The musical lasts for around 3 hours including the interval. ...
tartlette83 05.04.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Blood Brothers / Phoenix Theatre (London)
Advantages: An exhilirating experience, a great story, top class acting. Disadvantages: At times the music drowned out the words.
Blood Brothers opens with those words, spoken in the Liverpool twang of the mysterious narrator of the play, played by Keith Burns. It kept me enthralled throughout, which has to be something of an achievement as I am a very fidgety person who can't concentrate well! My sister said she would take me to a musical in the west end for my christmas present and I had to choose which one I wanted to see. Going from recomendations and personal choice, I ... ...Willy Russell, the writer of Blood Brothers, also wrote Educating Rita, Shirley Valentine and Stags and Hens. I acted out a scene from Educating Rita for my Drama GCSE and I loved the humour and down to earth feel of Russell's writing. Blood Brothers was Willy Russells only musical, and many people scoffed at the thought of the concept working.However, Russell had the last laugh as Blood Brothers has now been running for years and has won numerous ...
MissDirect 24.12.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Blood Brothers / Phoenix Theatre (London)
Advantages: Strong cast, effective use of tension, well organised Disadvantages: Length, some ideas not fully explored, repetitive at times.
Blood Brothers, the Society of West End Theatres has awarded a play written by Willy Russell and directed by Bob Thomson ‘The greatest musical of the decade.’
After seeing Blood Brothers at the Phoenix Theatre, I must agree that it is one of the most streamlined performances I have seen in the past. The play Blood Brothers is set in Liverpool, which interestingly was also the birthplace of the writer Willy Russell who was born just outside Liverpool. ... ...The reminder of the play Blood Brothers shows the differences in lifestyle the two boys live, almost like the difference of Black and White. As the play goes on this opposite relationship is changed and the similarities of the two are made clearer. Blood Brothers also attempt to show the large gap in society between the first class and the working class people, showing a great deal of status differences. We could see this by the language used by ...
deanparkr 07.08.2007
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Blood Brothers / Phoenix Theatre (London)
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