Blood Brothers has been very successful on stage - write about some of the elements in the play that you think may have made the play so popular.

Authors Avatar

Blood Brothers has been very successful on stage – write about some of the elements in the play that you think may have made the play so popular.

The musical blood brothers, written by Willy Russell, is a very popular and demanding play of the modern ages. It was written in the 1960’s and reflects upon the social and moral issues that were faced by the families at the time.

The play is set in the 1960’s Liverpool streets. Liverpool was one of the roughest and poorest areas in the UK. The people had to live through poverty and hardship. Most of the men had lost their jobs and were running on the money they had got from the dole every week. Teenagers from the lower class of families had to leave school and start working at the age of 15, so that they could help support the family and themselves.

The musical reflects the periods of time when the poor working class and the wealthier middle class were living side by side in the Liverpool suburbs. Willy Russell makes strong political points through the play. He is very critical about the families that lived in the 1960’s Liverpool. Through the play he tries to convey the point that, all problem faced by people lies outside in the society and community.

The musical has been running since 1983. It started of it production in the Lyric theatre London. Since then it has been running successfully through out the years, in popular demand. The essence of the play that reflects on the reality of life, love and emotions that ties people together, family relations, friendship, violence and importantly the injustice in the society that we live in, make the musical a popular piece that many people can relate to.

The play is put together in a mixture of a moral story that reflects issues, a suitable music and backtracks and lyrics that fit in beautifully. Humour is a necessary ingredient in any successful play or musical, Willy Russell has mixed in a fair amount of humour all the way through to make the play not only heart rendering but also amusing. The narrator, characters, lighting, costumes and interesting entrances and exists bring the play together to form an elaborate musical that has been running successfully through out the years.

The story line of the play is an interesting thought and shows an indepth view of the reality of our social and family lives.

“People are governed by fate”

This is a ‘well known’ and tried phrase that has been used in plays, musicals and stories since ancient Greek times. It is played as a tragedy that has come down through the ages, and has become well known to be a successful musical and play material. The history of this particular story line brings no surprise to the plays popularity. This is defiantly a positive factor towards the success of the play.

Romeo and Juliet is another example for the plays success throughout the ages. This theme was written from an earlier version written by Arthur Brooke as a narrative poem, ‘The tragical history of Romeus and Juliet’.

William Shakespeare reflects, on the doomed lives of the two lovers through fate and social affairs, in the story of Romeo & Julliet. In the case of blood brothers it is a story of two brothers’ lives condemned. Many parallels can be drawn between the two plays in the type of narration and story lines that have been used.

In Blood Brothers a narrator is used to provide the necessary background information that is vital to the play. In Romeo and Juliet the chorus gives the vital information e.g.: when they are thinking of each other and comes together in a sonnet.

Join now!

The play is divided into two acts. Act one deal with the story of the play up to the move and to the age of 14 of the kids. Act two sets the scene till they die. In act 1, come all the humour and enjoyment of childhood. The amusements and the games that children play and the humour has all been fitted into act 1. Act 2 focuses more on the serious adult life’s. Problems such as unemployment, love, support and superstition taking over the life’s of the characters, bring together a strong emotional appeal.

The music ...

This is a preview of the whole essay