Some of the scenes were humorous and an example of this is when Eddie, Linda and Mickey are talking to the policeman and Eddie says “I am Adolph Hitler and I’m catching the 92 bus”. This showed how much Eddie really believed what Linda and Mickey said. I thought there was only one tragedy and this was when Mickey started taking anti depressants when he went to jail. This made me feel as part of the audience quite sad seeing him crushed after seeing him so happy before he want in.
In blood Brothers there were major and minor characters. The main characters were Mrs Johnstone (Linda Nolen), Narrator (Philip Stewart), Mickey (Stephan Palfreman), Mrs Lyons (Louisa Lydell), Linda (Louise Clayton), Sammy (Daniel Taylor) and Eddie (Mark Hutchinson). There were no stereotypical characters in the play but, there were serous characters. The serous characters were Mrs Lyons and the Narrator. Mrs Lyons was serous because she always had a frown and bitter to people. The narrator always had a strong voice and was very stern.
I think Stephan Palfreman who Mickey played a very good child, he made you feel as if he was a child by the way he played games and how he showed his feeling for Linda. He played the part with lots of enthuisiam and excitement. When he was on stage he drew the audience’s attention by the he played his role. His speech was clear throughout the production and he successfully played an innocent character.
The portrayal of Mrs Johnstone by Linda Nolen was very good as she showed her true feelings for her children and showed that she never wanted to give Eddie away. The audience really sympathised for her as she gave in to a bully. I thought Linda aged very well thought the play from her youth in motherhood and onto her middle age.
I thought when Mark Hutchinson who played Eddie was a child he wasn’t as effective compared to Mickey, as he was a little too subtle but, he dominated the play with a confident attitude. He showed he had come from an upper class family from his appearance and voice.I found Louisa Lydell who played Mrs Lyons was very convincing when she was showing her fear for when she thought Eddie had gone. She had a very persuasive tone of voice.
I think the climax of the play was when Mickey when into jail and started taking Anti-depressants as he had gone from a bubbly character with a care free life to a dull, lifeless miserable man. I Think when it came to the climax the pace change from a fast flowing play to a slow play as you didn’t want to know what was going to happen as it would be bad.
I think another climax of the play was the sound of the gunshot and when the policeman came running in. I liked the way they could change the set from the city to the countryside by making it brighter and changing the music changed the whole environment. The lights helped change the mood as well. As when there was danger the lights would slowly change to red and when there was fear it would change to blue.
The props and costumes used were simple and effective they showed the period of the play well. When they were children Eddie was always neat and had clean clothes and Mickey had scruffy old and dirty clothes this also showed their Social status very well.
The lighting showed the atmosphere well as you knew when it was day or night easily. Spotlights were used a lot of the time to catch your attention. For example when there was narration. This was a good factor of the play. The Philip Stewart always seemed to dominate the play as his was always higher then the other actors to show his was ‘watching’ down on them.
I thought the beginning was very effective as you didn’t know what was happening then it all unravelled at the end. I thought the play was very good and really enjoyed I have mixed emotions on parts of the play. I didn’t really think that Mr Lyons was as effective as the other actors and actresses and he didn’t put as much enthusiasm as the other performers. I think the director wanted to use a variety of moods to keep you ‘glued’ to the play. Overall I really did enjoy the play and if I have the chance I would go and see it again. I think this play would appeal to all ages. When the play finished it was obvious that everyone else enjoyed the play as much as I did.
