Calling all StageSider’s, welcome back to another review. This time looking at ‘The Single Lady’. Buckle up, get ready to rap and death drop all at the same time, because this one is going to be a rollercoaster.
The Facts
I think it is important to point out some key facts about this show before I give my opinion on it.
This musical was “written almost entirely over Zoom and FaceTime, by second-year students Lauren Brewer and Will Geraint Drake” (Durham University).
Tickets to the show cost £8.00 plus a booking fee, which is fairly cheap for a show, but quite an upmarket community production (in my experience usually costing around £5 total).
The theatre is an intimate space, perhaps made for smaller (in terms of stage size) shows or less technically demanding shows.
Now these may seem completely out of the blue, but trust me it will all make sense the more you read on.
The Single Lady’s Roots.
This show is supposed to be “deeply rooted in R&B musical traditions and LGBTQ+ pop culture” (Durham University) following the likes of “ ‘SIX’ and ‘Hamilton’” (Durham University) in providing their take on history. So let’s take a dive into these descriptions. The show does feature some contemporary R&B. Traditional Rhythm and Blues is not present in this show. I believe the nod to R&B is through the style of rapping, and the connection to Hip Hop. So contemporary R&B is used, in my opinion, to bring the piece, and its characters, into this grey timeless era. The period in which historical figures roam in leather jackets and bright red leather boots, or corsets of alternative time periods.
LGBTQ+ pop culture
LGBTQ+ pop culture is used as a reference quite consistently, yet I would argue randomly. There doesn’t really seem to be a reason. The opening song is about Herstory, which seems a bit confusing, followed by a lot of OKURR and finger snapping. Combine this with some vogue moves, and you have yourself a recurring musical number that seems to make little difference to the plot. Throughout the show there is references to a slightly self loathing internal struggle with homosexuality, again not realling developing the character. A few mentions of wanting to be romantically involved with the straight male character and never any action.
I would be completely satisfied with a twist ending of them getting together. At least show some attempt at them flirting or something to tie in this character and the elephant in the room. This character seemed to be shouting about being gay, whilst also not really doing anything in the story. The role I saw for this character was being the all seeing eye. In this case, the role is useful, but why shout about being gay, and why does it matter? Other than that and a few references to Herstory there doesn’t seem to be a lot of references, oh maybe the use of a fan is supposed to be LGBTQ+ inspired?
Music / Musical Theatre influence, or imitation?
Now comes the hard part, the musical references. This section goes out to those fans of SIX the musical, Heathers the musical, Hamilton and some pop music. This show features, borrows and completely utilises the prior mentioned stimuli. There is a Suddenly Seymore reference, similar to SIX, a few random references to pop music and lines of songs put into the musical numbers. Random Britney Spears lyrics or nods to songs makes this show one of those you laugh along with. Entertaining and funny, but this distances the audience from the plot.
Too close for comfort
The Friends with benefits reprise is a very similar series of events compared to Heathers the Musical’s Dead Girl Walking number. To the point where Robert Dudley says “how did you get in here” and the queen replies something to the effect of had to see you hope I didn’t disturb you. Which is very close to the “Had to see you, hope I didn’t wake you” from Heathers. The streams of consciousness and asides that were rapped were very Hamilton, to the point of comparison. And the music to quite a lot of the songs are very relatable, recognisable. Songs such as ‘Thank You, Next’, ‘I Will Always Love You’ and various other tunes. These aren’t done in a self aware way or at least, it doesn’t come across that way. They seem to come across like original music, but I don’t know that it was all original.
Now I have nothing against a show that cleverly uses the music of other artists in a fair way or a parody, but I feel like this show wasn’t self aware enough, in its transparency to the audience, to do this to the same level as other musicals. The show seemed to utilise pre existing music, alter it slightly, and call it a new song. Some of the blocking was similar to Heathers the musical, specifically the representation of Dead Girl Walking, in the Friends with Benefits number.
Feeling like I have to compare.
I kept saying to my friend, who I went with, I hate to compare it to SIX the musical, but the show is making me. SIX went through several iterations and saw many alterations before it was the success it is today, and even then it is still changing. Having seen SIX close to its opening in the Arts Theatre and on tour, the show is completely different now to what it was then. If you YouTube Search the MEGASIX from Edinburgh you’ll see that it is completely different to what you get now too. Now, I bring this up because this show has a similar vibe. I think there is a diamond in here, I think something from this show needs to be polished and cleaned and then it will be ridiculously valuable. I just don’t know if I can see the diamond for the coal.
The good parts!
Now I want to bring up some really positive points, and this will link back to the facts said at the start of the review.
This show was written over ZOOM, which as you can imagine, won’t have been easy. Getting those characters to talk together in that way, over a facetime would not have been an easy task and really deserves some credit. Because the dialogue does work extremely well and the lyrics to the songs are impactful, when understood.
The theatre is quite an intimate place, with lighting primarily coming from the sides of the stage from the top corners. So the lighting design for this show is incredible for the lack of hanging space and the awkward angles.
The set design is minimalist but impactful. Anything on stage means something, and everything off stage doesn’t matter. You don’t care as you’re fixed on the show.
The Cast of The Single Lady!
The cast is great. Florence Lunnon, Oscar Scott, Vivienne Shaw and Sam Jones really command that stage. Each one with their own unique positive trait.
Florence’s character is invincible, she really does make sure that everything is done on purpose. You can tell there is a thought behind each move and vocal moment.
Oscar Scott commands the stage and your attention. He makes sure all eyes are on him in a way that is not overwhelming or tiring. That is a skill that equally takes a lot of work. From the moment he steps on the stage, to the moment he leaves, he is in character. He has your attention and he does not slip up.
Vivienne Shaw has a very powerful voice, with quite a wide range of styles. From rapping to belting out some notes, she really knows how to hit those notes, when she needs to.
Sam Jones’ voice is gorgeous. Some of the solos in the second half had me lost for words. The ability to fit into the chorus and harmonies is amazing.
In Summary
This show isn’t a bad show. It was a night of entertainment and it is good to see student work in a working theatre off campus. For £8.00, this show is worth the money. But I would say it is appropriately priced and if it was much more, it wouldn’t be as worth it. If the 175 seat room was full, the show would bring in £1400 a night. That is a lot of money.
Lacking something
The plot also seemed to be lacking something. There was a lack of depth to some of the moments. Some issues seemed to be resolved by a very simple action or resolution, which created quite short storylines. This meant the history of the Virgin Queen was over quite quickly. It seemed quite surface level, and while this is perfectly acceptable for a stand alone show that aims to do this. I believe this show is too similar to other shows for this to be the case. And I do think that someone on the directing team has seen these shows and taken influence. But the similarities are too close to be a coincidence.
The need to compare
With a consistent thought of SIX the musical going through my head, I keep comparing the depth. SIX is deep enough to allow those that are interested in the history, the moment to explore that. But it is glamourous enough to be a spectacle for those who just want to escape life for an hour. I don’t think this show, The Single Lady, provides either side of this scale to the point where it can stand on its own two legs. Again, that doesn’t mean the show is bad or one to miss. It just needs that development that other shows have gone through to become the hits they have become.
The rating for The Single Lady:
I am going to give this show three stars out of five. Now, I have to specify why this isn’t a five star or a one star. And that is because the acting and singing was ok/good. The characters were strong, some of the vocals were brilliant, the dancing was ok. The story seemed to be lacking something. The use of musical theatre references, copying images from shows and using the melodies of pop music was not unique enough to be the selling point. The show was ok, it wasn’t bad, but the £8.00 fee was appropriate. I don’t feel like I need to return to see the show again, I do feel like it is a good start. It is a show that can be developed and worked on to become something next level.
Photography – Jennifer Leigh
Have your say!
Have you seen The Single Lady? What did you think? Let me know in the comments and let’s get a discussion going.
As always, please be respectful of each other’s opinions and be kind to each other. I completely respect and value everyone that worked on The Single Lady. We need to remember that these are people with feelings. Let’s treat them with respect. Bullying will not be tolerated and harmful language will be removed.
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