REVIEW - LITTLE VOICE - RICHMOND THEATRE -

The Rise and Fall of Little Voice is an Oliver-Award winning comedy-drama play by Jim Cartwright. The story has been described as a Northern fairy tale, with a mother and daughter at the heart of it.

Little Voice (LV) is quiet, unassuming and seeks comfort from her record collection of musicals icons. Her mother, Mari, is a stark contrast; loud, obscene, and self-centred. When alone, LV sings as amazingly as the famous divas she plays on repeat. From Marilyn Monroe to Judy Garland, LV gives spectacular and accurate renditions of these great singing icons. When Mari’s new love interest, sleazy club owner, Ray Say, hears LV’s amazing vocals, he instantly views this as a money-making opportunity.

Starring a leading cast including ‘the girl with a thousand voices’ Christina Bianco playing Little Voice and soap stars, Shobna Gulati and Ian Kelsey as Mari and Ray Say. As a soap opera fan, I had no doubt in Gulati and Kelsey’s abilities– but they still surprised me!

Gulati gives a standout performance and commands the stage with her charisma. Mari is over the top, potty mouthed and incredibly funny. Gulati’s comedic timing is brilliant! She speaks her lines with such precision for the role of Mari, playing it with eccentricity that makes the audience burst into fits of laughter. Even Mari’s fashion sense is loud and mismatched with random accessories and kitten heels, compared to the plain LV, who even when glammed up looked uncomfortable. I also giggled at Mari’s expressive mannerisms and whenever she jumbles up words to make her own idioms. (“You wait a Minnesota” and “Ray is RAY-zor sharp!”)

Kelsey as Ray Say is impressive as the cheerful, cheeky chap that tells Mari everything she wants to hear. But he soon reveals a manipulative and abusive side following the fame and money LV brings.

The show has an array of comical moments, especially from supporting character, Sadie, played by Fiona Mulvaney. Sadie is the simple, slightly daft ‘friend’ of Mari’s. Together, the pair have slapstick comedy moments and amusing dance numbers. Even when the focal scene was not on Mulvaney, she still drew our attention for whatever random (and often gross) thing she had going on in the background. Whilst the character of Sadie does not have many lines, she is a doting friend, who comforts LV, and even tries to intervene when Mari becomes irate with her daughter. Billy, played by Akshay Gulati, was another positive supporting character who takes an interest in LV and encourages her to find her voice.

Little Voice is delicate and timid. However, when she sings, she completely transforms. Bianco has done well to portray these contrasting personalities. Bianco showcases her breath-taking vocals, performing a medley from notable legends such as Billie Holiday, Edith Piaf, and Shirley Bassey. LV wore a stunning floor length fishtail gown, covered in silver sequins, gracefully strutting across the stage. I could not decide which rendition was my favourite as they were all wonderfully sung! I enjoyed the ups and down of this story. The second half provided much more of a back story to the characters, and I felt the writing was even stronger.

Kelsey’s performance was great and very convincing as Ray, making us despise him as the show went on. As he lashes out at both LV and Mari, he insults Mari and her appearance. This was sad to watch as we had seen Mari fall (literally) head over heels for Ray. Having said this, Mari displays so many bad traits as a mother. I did think we were going to have a turning point, but Mari takes this as opportunity to scorn her daughter.

We learn more about LV’s late father and his passion for music. I loved how LV described the way music makes her feel and how the ‘records became her tongue’. The ending was heart-warming, with Little Voice finally finding the courage to speak big and stand up for herself.

It is no wonder the show has received many accolades in the West End, on Broadway and even has a movie adaption! The Rise and Fall of Little Voice is a poignant, exciting, and hilarious tale about finding your own voice.

I highly recommend this show, it is running at Richmond Theatre until 2^nd July! Or you can then catch it on the final leg of the tour in York and Cheltenham.

{🎟 AD – PR invite – Tickets were gifted in exchange for an honest review}

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