The Route To Happiness
Landor Theatre
Reviewed on Thursday 21st February 2013
"The Route To Happiness charts the individual and interweaving experiences of three present-day Londoners in pursuit of their respective dreams: finding love, making money, and becoming famous. A show with humour and heart, audiences will be amused, moved, and possibly even made to question their own desires and goals."
The Route To Happiness is an uplifting, lighthearted new musical performed by an experienced, highly talented cast of just three. The show, which is sung right through, has a distinctive sound and sits nicely in the intimate Landor Theatre.
Alexander S. Bermange has done well to write such a unique musical. The first act is a little underwhelming as not much actually happens. A little too much time is spent establishing the basic characters. The beauty of The Route To Happiness is that it is so fresh and relevant, the three characters are very identifiable and relatable (hence why less time is needed to introduce them at the beginning). Luckily I never became bored as there is plenty of comedy and catchy songs.
The second half is considerably better. The story erupts and finally becomes thoroughly engaging, and eventually fulfilling as each character manages to find their route to happiness... it is a little cheesy but it works. Sometimes you don't want to go to the theatre and be taken through a roller-coaster of deep and meaningful emotions. Sometimes it's nice to simply have a drink in the bar and then watch a friendly, high quality, easygoing show.
Shona White, Niall Sheehy and Cassidy Janson are outstanding as Lorna, Marcus and Trinity. All three have very distinctive tones to their voices which contrast beautifully together. Alexander S. Bermange's score allows all three to showcase versatility. There are some moments of pure vulnerability and others of immense anger. I particularly enjoyed Shona White's rendition of I'll Never Change A Single Thing towards the end of the show. It was incredibly tender and she acted each word sincerely, leaving me itching for a cast recording to be released!
I found a few minor details irritating, such as inconsistency in the style of the piece. For example I thought it worked really well when the phone ringtone was incorporated into the score but then in another scene the phone ringtone was played as a sound effect.
The Route To Happiness is a fantastic piece of theatre which should be embraced by all. With a little development The Route To Happiness could be something very special... go and see it for yourself!
The Route To Happiness runs at the Landor Theatre until Sunday 24th February 2013. Visit www.bermange.co.uk for further information.
Reviewed by Andrew Tomlins (Editor)
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