Dark Angels

The Space @ Royal College of Surgeons    7 - 29 August @ 20.15    The About Turn Theatre Company

Think of Hollyoaks deciding to do a musical – think of casting a young Jennifer Aniston look-alike alongside a young Hugh Grant look-alike and you may just end up with Dark Angels. The soap-like feel to the plot and characters is teamed with disco-techno musical numbers with a few torch songs thrown in for good measure and contrast.

The plot line is somewhat naïve, but when did a good musical ever need a solemn plot line? Here, the book is over-elaborate, re-iterating the songs either before or after they are sung and tends not to trust that the audience will realise what the characters are telling us when they sing. This is a pity as it seems a long show for both cast and audience and could be far more slick if the musical numbers are trusted to do their job.

The number ‘Obsession’ gave this cast the chance to flex their dancing muscles to great effect and was the catchiest tune in the piece. With a bit of editing and polishing in the book and direction, this may be a show that would appeal to youth audiences and performers in the future.