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Still here: While They Were Waiting - Upstairs At The Gatehouse

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As the song goes, time heals everything. Or as another song says, it's time after time. Yet waiting—for a moment, a minute, or even a while—can feel like a chore. In Gary Wilmot’s slightly absurd and silly While They Were Waiting, the focus is on waiting and wordplay. No opportunity is missed to find more than one meaning in what is said. A debate arises about the difference between a smidge and a whisker. There's a playful riff on how you can be here and over there at the same time, depending on your standpoint. If this piece has a point at all, it depends on what you find funny. The concept of waiting-related language is, in itself, amusing, and there is plenty to laugh about in this show. It’s currently playing at Upstairs at the Gatehouse . The premise is simple: Mulbery (Steve Furst) arrives for an appointment and is kept waiting. What the appointment is for, we are not clear about but he is waiting for a yellow door to open. Nobody answers when he rings. He’s joined by th...

Little grey pills: Be More Chill @theotherpalace

What do you do when you're a gawky young teenager trying to fit in? If you get the chance to take a particular pill from a shoe salesman that will make you more popular, why wouldn't you? And so begins an science fiction take on the high school story about trying to fit in. Where it's hard to be yourself when the voices inside your head are telling you how to fit in.  And these voices  have an uncanny resemblance to Keanu Reeves from The Matrix. With an enthusiastic cast, infectious music and a quirky take on the high school musical genre, it's fun even if you're not a devotee of the book or the social media phenomena. It’s currently playing at The Other Palace.

Be More Chill is based on a book by Ned Vizzini, which drew on his experiences at high school. Vizzini struggled with anxiety and depression throughout his life, and it led to his death by suicide in 2013.

The story translates remarkably well to stage capturing in song the doubts and struggles of the characters with everyday pressures at school. There are also some astute reflections on the limits of technology, particularly in allowing young people to grow and learn on their own.

The music and lyrics by Joe Iconis seem to grow from the text in quirks and blips. Not every song may be hummable, and lines such as "when you love someone, you put your pants on," might seem a little odd. But in the context of the show it seems plausible.

Heading up the enthusiastic cast is Scott Folan as the gawky Jeremy and Miracle Chance as the quirky Christine. Alex Basco Koch's video projections also give you the sense you're trapped with Jeremy in a game that you can't get out.

A modern update of the high school musical. Well almost modern since scenes are set in now-bankrupt stores of Payless Shoes and soon to be gone Forever 21.

Directed by Stephen Brackett, Be More Chill is at The Other Palace until 3 May.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


Photos by Matthew Crockett

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