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Brief awakenings: White Rose The Musical @MaryleboneTHLDN

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A fascinating and daring act of defiance in Nazi Germany by a group of university students in Munich is given a slightly perplexing rock musical treatment in White Rose, the musical. Something seems amiss in this earnest and occasionally tuneful show. It lags more than it inspires, which is surprising given the tragic and compelling history of the real-life characters the show depicts. Given that young people are increasingly likely to vote for far-right parties across Europe, it’s an opportunity to look at a time when they had a different perspective on the future. Perhaps something has been lost in the translation or the larger space of the Marylebone Theatre where it plays.  The White Rose were a group of university students in Munich who sought to undermine the Third Reich through publication of a series of pamphlets urging passive resistance to the Nazi regime. Over a brief period between June 1942 and February 1943, they distributed their pamphlets across campus using ...

Theatre: 365



I wasn't quite sure what to expect from seeing 365. It played at the Edinburgh Festival to some very positive reviews, but a two hour play about children in care taking their first steps to independence seemed like an unusual way to spend a Saturday evening at the theatre. Since it was based in Scotland I dragged fellow chorister Stephen to see it since he was from Glasgow and I figured he could help with the translation (well of the accents anyway). I was hoping I would get away with nudging him and asking from time to time "Wha-did-he-say? Wha-did-he-say??" This sort of worked...

The play unfolds telling the stories of a group of children who pass through a "practice flat" as they gain their first steps to living independently and... adulthood. There is much scope for dream-like sequences, music and movement and these appear throughout and help make what could be a depressing subject a little more insightful and dare I say it... Even entertaining.

While at nearly two hours it felt a little long, overall the play was curiously enjoyable if quirky at times. I wasn't always engaged by the large cast of characters and it wasn't just because of their accents, but perhaps a deliberate attempt at realism. I could live with this, but even in this fractured state I couldn't help but think some of the stories within the play felt like they could have taken more time to unfold, while others could have done with a trim. It runs until the end of next week at the Lyric Hammersmith, a cultural oasis in the motorway wasteland otherwise known as Hammersmith. Well at least the pizza at the theatre wasn't too bad, but after the show Stephen and I couldn't get out of there fast enough to get a drink in a decent part of town. Well after all this realism we needed a drink so we settled for Soho. After an evening's entertainment about children in care being offered stolen dildos, and charlie hardly seemed like a big deal...

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