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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 ...

Fags and flares: Anita and Me @stratfordeast


Anita and Me, currently playing at Theatre Royal Stratford East covers Meera Syal's life growing up in 1970s West Midlands. It was an era of chain smoking, flares and glam rock. But something feels lost in the translation from book to stage production. It feels like it is a series of random encounters with northern stereotypes.

Not much happens in this slice of life comedy-drama and the accompanying music often serves to distract from the story making the show less involving than it should be.



But it is not entirely a lost cause (particularly if you have to read the book as part of your GCSEs). There are some fun moments of cultures clashing, such as when Meena sings her favourite song from the radio only to have her family give it a distinct Indian rhythm with a tabala accompaniment, percussion and overly enthusiastic hand clapping.

Most interesting are the themes of being out of place, a long way from home and the sense of family. Briefly some sharp observations are made about British values (or lack of them) around family, but too quickly they get dismissed by a song and a dance.

The piece needs to decide whether it is a musical or a play with music. It might be more successful as the latter, particularly if a decision is made to remove a painfully awkward song about African missionaries. With a plethora of racial insults for lyrics, it just is not written well enough to be considered ironic.

New musicals are delicate things, but it should take more than a thin sounding electric keyboard and a few songs cobbled together to make them resonate with their audiences.

The large cast try hard with the material and give the production class with some nice performances. Ameet Chana and Ayesha Dharker as Meena's parents get the opportunity to give some shading to their characters, briefly giving some insight into why they came to a small village. Mandeep Dillon manages the difficult task portraying Meena, who is caught between two cultures and wanting to identify more with the locals, despite what they think and do.

Anita and Me runs at Theatre Royal Stratford East until 21 November. Look out for their new adaptation of Robin Hood for panto season which starts from 5 December.

⭐︎⭐︎

Photos: production photos by Ellie Kurttz



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