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Prayers and thoughts: The Inseparables @Finboroughtheatre

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The Inseparables brings Simone de Beauvoir’s posthumously published novel to life. It traces a lifelong friendship between Sylve and Andrée, two unconventional girls who grew up in a stifling world where being a woman meant getting married or entering a convent. With a quick pace and engaging performances from the two leads, it is a journey back into the 20th century that captures two unconventional women trapped in a conventional world that will have you reflecting on how much or little things have moved on in the last century. It’s currently playing at the Finborough Theatre .  We’re introduced to Sylve praying for her country, France, to be saved from the war and indoctrinated into the world of faith and obedience. But too smart for all that, her life was full of detached guilt and boredom. But when she meets Andrée, a new arrival at her school, she is struck by how different she is from everyone else. She was burned in a fire and had a passion for life that nobody else she knew...

Jerry’s Children: Showtune @TheUniontheatre


An evening of songs by composer Jerry Herman weaved into a song cycle about the excitement of being on stage, or anywhere for that matter is an unexpected joy. Particularly when it's sung by a young and energetic cast. It's currently playing at the Union Theatre.

It's been over thirty years since an original Jerry Herman musical has been on stage. That none of the cast were born when these songs were written probably isn't lost on the audience. But Herman's work remains almost a regular feature of the West End as Andrew Lloyd Webber's Evita or Joseph. Recent years have seen La Cage Aux Folles, Hello Dolly! Or Mack and Mabel. 


For a period from the sixties through to the early eighties, Jerry Herman wrote musicals that helped define the idea of what a musical show should be. Emotional, funny and always tuneful.  Now there's a chance for a new generation of musical theatre graduates to take on his work. With the young cast of ten performers assembled, the optimistic spirit of Herman's songs comes to the fore. When they're all on stage, they pack a strong musical and rhythmic punch. But there are also some insightful moments of tenderness, such as the interpretation by Aidan Cutler and Alex Burns of the song "I Won't Send Roses". 

At the piano music director Henry Brennan keeps things moving at pace and gives the show a big sound.  

The progression of the songs suggests that the songs follow the on-stage off-stage drama of the performers. It's staged as if it's set in an Am-dram theatre, but the production could have benefited from a decluttering exercise. The stage looks like the entire contents of the backstage dressing rooms were dumped there. 

Still, as an opportunity to take in a fresh perspective on the words and music of Jerry Herman, and possibly a chance to see a few future stars, this show is a treat. 

Directed by Luke Byrne, Showtune is at the Union Theatre until August 24. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️




Photos by Jamie Scott-Smith

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