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Blood Borothers has now been showing at the Phoenix Theatre for nearly 12 years and in my opinion is the best musical i have seen. I don't know a lot about theatre productions but i know when something is good.
The Plot
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I won't give away the main events of the story and the consequences incase you havn't seen the show, hopefully i will just inspire you to go and see it. Willy Russels objective when he wrote this play was to show up how adsurd the current system was and he did this is an excellent way. He showed up the differences between the classes using a satirical play.
Willy Russel himself was a member of the lowqer class so he experienced what life would have been like. Mrs Johnstone is a poor woman, left single after her husband left with 8 children. To earn money she is working for an middle-upper class family.
The story revolves around several themes, superstition, dreams, classes. All have an effect somehow on the plot, but Mrs Johnstone was superstitios and the woman she was working for used this when she wanted her way.
Mrs Johnstone was expecting a baby which would be fine, but when the doctor told her she was expecting two she new the authorities would take them away. The result of this was she gave one to Mrs Lyons (the woman she was working for).
The main story revolves around the two boys and how one of them, Mickey is raised in the poor lower class way, and Edward who gets everything he wants because he is in middle-upper class. He gets educated well and so gets a good job.
The story takes place over 36 years from when they first become friencds to when they are trying to get jobs. There are many complications for example there is a girl, Linda who they both love and she marries Mickey but ends up loving Edward. Willy Russel wanted to show up how the middle-upper classes got all the opportunities and this play is the perfect example.
From the beginning of the play you know that both boys will die but you don't know why? They grow apart not knowing they are brothers but do they find out? This play is very funny but very sad to see how the two characters grow in their different ways, from being best friends to, not enemies but people with different opportunities.
The play takes part in two phases, when the boys are young, this is hilarious and both boys are funny. The second half of the play is sad and upsetting. The stresses and strains of lower class life shines through when Mickey is under a lot of pressure.
If you havn't seen this play then ireccommend it. I studied it for GCSE and found it amazingly helpful to see the play and get the whole picture but the memory of the play will be with me forever. I think Willy Russel will give Les Mis a run for his money to see which one stays around for the most time.
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