AD| Eternal Love – Review

Calling all StageSiders, welcome back to another review here at StageSideUK. This time around we are talking about Steve Steinman’s Eternal Love which played at the Hippodrome on the 24th April.

Disclaimer: I was gifted two free press tickets in exchange for an honest review.

We flew down to the Darlington Hippodrome tonight to see Eternal Love, on its press night. Following a string of tour dates, Darlington is tour stop 16 on the flyer and, sadly the experience did not live up to the hype for me.

Opening with little to no explaination, you are left out in the dark if you are not a Steinman fan. As vampire virgins, I was confused and found myself in the middle of a ‘story’. The show starts with a flashy number introducing the baron, but again explains little about his history or himself.

Whilst the show has no clear narrative, the audience seemed to receive the action on stage with open arms, culminating in an ovation from some clear fanatics. Sadly, I couldn’t share in their reaction.

Perhaps I have been spoilt in my theatrical experiences, but I found much to be desired in the performances. The band did a great job at guiding the audience through the scenes and the musical moments. There were also a scattering of special effects to keep the audience entertained.

Sadly the screens that were used as the set, stopped working mid act 1 and began flickering and then turned black. A small technical error, you may say. The show must go on, right? However, after a rather confusing but story-less first act, the screens breaking was kind of the nail in the coffin for me.

Now at StageSideUK, we do try to keep things positive or at least neutral, but I have never veered away from honesty or transparency and I simply didn’t enjoy the show. The singing fell flat, the dancing was repetitive and the scenography left me wanting more. The set was made up of 2 large screens that played background videos during the scenes. Sadly they just didn’t make any sense. The castle was on fire for a good 1/3 of the show, with the another 1/3 of the show being in a windy bedroom and the other 1/3 being outside 3 different castles (but all supposedly being the same).

You can’t like every show you see, and sadly Eternal Love was one of these shows.

Accessibility

This show is loud, there are sudden noises and strobe lights. There are also moments where pyrotechnics are used, which can be felt throughout the audience. There were signs up throughout the theatre that mentioned the special effects and I would say we were well warned.

Value For Money

We were invited to see the show for free however, our seats would have cost £32 each. I couldn’t happily say that these prices are worth it. The lower priced £18.50 seats also felt a little steep due to their extremely restricted view. The costumes were extremely pedestrian, the set has technical errors and the lighting was slightly confusing.

Overall

If you have got this far, I think you know whats about to happen. I am all for championing theatre, and I would never want to tear a show to pieces. Different people have different responses to theatre. There were members of the audience who were cheering and screaming and gave it a standing ovation. I just wasn’t one of those people, and I just don’t think the show is meant for me.

Sadly I am giving the show two out of five stars.

Have your say!

Have you seen Eternal Love? Let me know in the comments and let’s get a discussion going.

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