CurtainUp
CurtainUp

The Internet Theater Magazine of Reviews, Features, Annotated Listings
www.curtainup.com


HOME PAGE

SITE GUIDE

SEARCH

REVIEWS

REVIEW ARCHIVES

ADVERTISING AT CURTAINUP

FEATURES

NEWS
Etcetera and
Short Term Listings


LISTINGS
Broadway
Off-Broadway

NYC Restaurants

BOOKS and CDs

OTHER PLACES
Berkshires
London
California
New Jersey
DC
Connecticut
Philadelphia
Elsewhere

QUOTES

TKTS

PLAYWRIGHTS' ALBUMS

LETTERS TO EDITOR

FILM

LINKS

MISCELLANEOUS
Free Updates
Masthead
Writing for Us
A CurtainUp London London Review
Backbeat

Share
Paul is the one who can play and George is the one who can change things — John Lennon
Backbeat
Ruta Gedmintas as Astrid photographing the group
(Photo: Nobby Clark)
Backbeat is the back story of the early days of The Beatles before they burst onto the world stage as the most significant pop group of the twentieth century. We first meet a different line up from the familiar one of The Fab Four with John Lennon’s (Andrew Knott) friend from Art School Stuart Sutcliffe (Nick Blood) who can’t play a note on bass guitar but who in John’s opinion has the right look for the band so he can learn one chord! Pete Best (Oliver Bennett) is on drums for most of the show until ousted by Ringo Starr (Adam Sopp). Paul McCartney (Daniel Healy) and George Harrison (Will Payne) complete the line up and they venture over to Hamburg to play in a club where Stuart meets and falls in love with photographer Astrid Kirchherr (Ruta Gedmintas).

Originally a film in 1994, this staged production started out at the Glasgow Citizens Theatre early in 2010 and is directed by David Leveaux. Not all the cast look exactly like their counterparts but they all can sing and play guitar (albeit right handed for lefthander Paul) or drums, so there is live music.

The early days in Hamburg see the seedy club they play in and a raw but authentically gritty sound, for "Johnny Be Good", rougher than the recorded music we are used to after the addition of George Martin’s unique orchestrations. They borrow tunes from Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis and aspire to the American rock tradition.

The tragedy is a real life one as Stu reports worsening headaches having given up the band for the love of Astrid and fine art. We meet Brian Epstein the future manager, son of a music shop owner and rather well spoken compared to these Liverpudlian lads.

The Hamburg clubs are shown, the first one where they play for an audience of prostitutes, where George loses his cherry and they sleep behind a cinema screen. Later, the more upmarket Hamburg club is filled with stylish poseurs and gender benders but they also come back to Liverpool and play in The Cavern. They are deported from Germany when George is found to be under age.

The lighting is very good and Stuart’s scenes often have backdrops of his art, some of his paintings variations on Jackson Pollock. Christopher Oram’s designs are beautiful. I liked too the giant blow up backdrops of Astrid’s monochrome photographs of the band, close ups of Stuart and the steely grey ironwork set. After Stuart, the Beatles develop their individual style and Astrid’s haircut of a mophead style for Stu is later adopted by the rest of them along with her gift to them of the collarless, grey suit jackets of the Beatles’ early look.

Andrew Knott’s John Lennon has the Liverpudlian accent, quick witted humour and charisma we now associate with his unique musical impact. When Knott stands at the microphone he has exactly John Lennon’s wide bent kneed stance. We feel the triangle friendship tension between John Stuart and Astrid. Nick Blood is tremendously sympathetic as Stuart. Daniel Healy’s singing as Paul is excellent. Together they sound very good indeed and the finale is magnificent: the first Beatles records which soared into the hit parade, "Please Please Me", "Please Mr Postman" and "Love Me Do".

Backbeat is much more than a tribute show or a jukebox musical and much better. There is satisfying true life, biographical detail and David Leveaux has crafted a musical which while being true to the Beatles’ tradition and the memory of Stuart Suttcliffe has us dancing in the aisles to an authentic sound.

Share

Subscribe to our FREE email updates with a note from editor Elyse Sommer about additions to the website -- with main page hot links to the latest features posted at our numerous locations. To subscribe, E-mail: esommer@curtainup.comesommer@curtainup.com
put SUBSCRIBE CURTAINUP EMAIL UPDATE in the subject line and your full name and email address in the body of the message -- if you can spare a minute, tell us how you came to CurtainUp and from what part of the country.
Backbeat
Based on the Universal Picures Film by Iain Softley and Stephen Jeffreys
Directed by David Leveaux

Starring: Nick Blood, Ruta Gedmintas, Andrew Knott, Daniel Healy, Will Payne, Oliver Bennett
With: Rosy Benjamin, Edward Clarke, Josie Dunn, Sam Ford, Ben Fox, Mark Hammersley, Dominic Rouse, Louise Shuttleworth, Adam Sopp, Charles Swift, James Wallace, Jo Dockery
Design: Christopher Oram and Andrew D Edwards
Projection Design: Timothy Bird and Nina Dunn for Knifeedge
Musical Director: James McKeon
Dance and Vocal Arrangements: George Stiles
Movement Director: Nikki Woollaston
Musical Supervisor and OPriginal Incidental Music: Paul Stacey
Sound: Ed Clarke and Paul Groothuis
Lighting: Howard Harrison and David Holmes
Fight Director: Renny Krupinski
Running time: Two hours 30 minutes including one interval
Box Office: 0844 871 7624
Booking to 24th March 2012
Reviewed by Lizzie Loveridge based on 10th October 2011 performance at The Duke of York’s, St Martin’s Lane, London London WC2N 4BG (Tube: Leicester Square)
REVIEW FEEDBACK
Highlight one of the responses below and click "copy" or"CTRL+C"
  • I agree with the review of Backbeat
  • I disagree with the review of Backbeat
  • The review made me eager to see Backbeat
Click on the address link E-mail: esommer@curtainup.com
Paste the highlighted text into the subject line (CTRL+ V):

Feel free to add detailed comments in the body of the email . . . also the names and emails of any friends to whom you'd like us to forward a copy of this review.

London Theatre Walks


Peter Ackroyd's  History of London: The Biography



London Sketchbook



tales from shakespeare
Retold by Tina Packer of Shakespeare & Co.
Click image to buy.
Our Review


©Copyright 2011, Elyse Sommer.
Information from this site may not be reproduced in print or online without specific permission from esommer@curtainup.com