- The importance of the Narrator
The narrator had an important role in the play, dressed in a black suit and tie he was easily recognised and was constantly there. Acting as a reader, telling the audience what happens at every intersection, explaining through both singing and talking. The fact that he was seen by all whilst the protagonists acted, this created an element of suspense, as the audience was itching to know what he has to say next.
Each character played their role convincingly incorporating the basic drama techniques such as variety of voice, facial expression and body language. From this performance I would say the Johnstone family held a strong performance than the Lyons. It is fair to say the Johnstones performance was more believable. From the Liverpoolian accents to the hand-me-down 1960 dressing, it was evident that the actors moulding into the roles. Mickeys actor played a fantastic small child, picking his nose and swearing and this contrasted wonderfully with the scenes of Mickeys depression. It just showed how by changing body language voice you can turn into a new character. Mrs Johnstone always wore simplistic clothing and makeup to emphasise on her busy child-filled life, her singing voice was amazing as it made the audience understand her character more, especially when she was hurt or stressed.
I feel the Lyons family weren’t as strong but still performed well. Mrs Lyons and Eddie had not really used the Liverpool accent at all, instead they just spoke with a common posh accent. Mrs Lyons had a wonderful singing voice but I feel she did not portray her character as well as she could have. Eddie and Mickey complimented each other in their acting, when on scene together their ‘brotherly’ nature is felt and seen by the audience.
I was happy to have read the book before watching the play as it showed me what I should expect in the play as well as the characteristics of the characters. After watching it I was able to put the character to their behaviour, the play deployed the characters presented in the book. The play was an example of a well structured paly that shows actors acting different ages successfully but still being the same person; the singing, props, sounds and backdrops all complimented the characters to create a well done performance.
