Stomping dances, fiddles and a talented group of musicians should be a fantastic mix.
Photo:Mark Senior
Once begins as you enter the auditorium with the cast onstage recreating the feeling of a lock-in down your local with traditional Irish melodies and dancing being performed by the cast of actor-musicians. Originally a screenplay by the same name, this is a story of a nameless Irish Guy (Daniel Healy) and a Czech Girl (Emma Lucia) who meet over music and a Hoover. The Czech girl recognises the musical talent of the Irish Guy and nurtures this enabling him to hire a recording studio and produce a demo CD. The Czech Girl persuades him to go and visit the Irish girl (Rosalind Ford) in the USA who promoted the emotion that caused the songs to be written. The stage version manages to be nearly twice as long as the film resulting in the stage production feeling a little slow and the storyline dragging at times in the first half.
The members of the cast are hugely talented, all playing musical instruments and had the audience clapping and stomping along before the lights had dimmed. The show and talents of the musicians was loved by the audience during this press performance. The Czech characters are seen speaking to each other in their own dialect, and there are subtitles across the stage in the Czech language. The scenery is very static as a pub/ bar with the tables and seats remaining on stage throughout with the rest of the cast sitting around listening to the actors on stage. A bed or sofa is wheeled onto the stage to show that the location of the story has changed. The lack of changing scenery did work to create the intimacy of a traditional Irish pub setting but did seem at odds with the story at times.
The audience enjoys the show and joins in with the stomps and claps. Despite the slow pace and lack of depth to the tale, the skill and beauty of the music are excellent and fans of Indie/folk-rock will enjoy the talent of the musicians. An enjoyable evening that feels more like a get together in your local than musical show.
Once is running at the New Victoria Theatre in Woking until 15th February 2020.
