Lots of different drama forms and styles of theatre were used in the production. These included naturalistic acting, musical drama, direct address and physical theatre. Naturalistic acting is very realistic and believable. An example of this being used on the play is the drug scene between Linda and Mickey in the kitchen. Musical drama is the songs and music used throughout the production. The song “ Marilyn Monroe” was used to help tell the story, changing the meaning of “dancing” to fit what was happening. Direct address was when the Narrator spoke lines directly to the audience to either help the play proceed or explain what was happening. Physical theatre was used in the bus ride scene and also at the fun fair. People represented a rollercoaster using their voices and bodies and the same for the bus. At the start of the musical we saw the end. It made you ask yourself questions about what was happening? Who are the people lying down? Why is the music so sad and emotional? It was effective as it made you very inquisitive and intrigued to find out more.
The actors communicated who they were to the audience through song, voice, outfits, body language and the interaction with each other. The actress playing Linda changed what she was doing to show how old she was and how she felt about life. She went from an energetic tomboy, to a sexy teenager, to a stressed out mum. Her body language told us that she had grown up by the way she tense and stood right up. He voice was a lot lower and deeper. The Narrator in the play represented the little voice in the back of your mind, your conscience. I felt scared, insecure and timid when the Narrator was on stage as it felt that he would be able to read my mind and so my guard will fall. The fact that he was always watching everyone and often from the shadows gave the impression that he was sly and scheming like a fox ready to pounce on his prey. His voice was very strong and confident; it gave the effect that he was all knowing and wise. He had a very harsh Liverpudlian accent, which supports my thought that he was conscience the characters in the play were all from Liverpool. He wore a black suit with a shirt underneath which he didn’t change from throughout the musical. It was a lot different from the other characters in the play. I think it was important that he dressed individually as he wasn’t part of the production as a main character in the story line. It also helped the audience not to get confused.
As well as the performances by the actors, the design and staging of the production also highlighted the themes and helped to communicate the status and class of the characters to the audience. The costumes of Mickey and Eddie were very contrasting. When they were younger Mickey was relaxed as a child whereas Eddie was very constricted, as he didn’t mess about and have fun with the other little boys his age. This showed through their clothes. Eddie wore his knee-high socks and polished shoes whereas Mickey wore Sammy’s scruffy old big jumper. This told us that Mickey’s family couldn’t afford to buy new clothes for him so he had his older brothers “hand-me-downs”. Eddie on the other hand could afford new clothes and dressed smartly because he had the money to do so. The same goes for the mothers, Mrs Johnstone and Mrs Lyons. Mrs Johnstone wears a floral apron whereas Mrs Lyons wears a smart tailored suit. Her outfit kept changing throughout the musical as her character had the money to keep on buying new outfits. She wore jewellery and had her hair styled which she could afford to have done everyday. Mrs Johnstone kept her outfit the same all through the production, as her character wouldn’t have been able to buy new outfits all the time. Her floral apron however represented that she was a mum who always put her children first before herself. Linda’s costume effectively communicated the different stages of Linda’s life. Her outfits went from a bright yellow dress to high heels and a miniskirt to a dull baggy jumper and jeans. At the different stages of her life her clothes showed the changed, her emotions and what she was going through at the time. For example when she had a child, she was worried that she couldn’t support her daughter financially as her husband, Mickey, didn’t have a job so there was no income coming in. At this point she was wearing baggy jumpers and jeans, which represented her feelings. Nothing was going for her anymore and her drive and charisma had gone. Other actors changed their outfits aswell, like the milkman who took of his hat, then turned into a doctor. There was also a teacher at both of the brothers schools, who just took off his coat and rolled up his sleeves to change between the two.
There were different aspects of the set which reflected the themes of the musical. There were rich and poor sides of the stage. The dirty and vandalised council house contrasted with the clean, white detached house with a balcony. It juxtaposes the two different houses as it emphases the huge contrast. The houses of Mrs Johnstone and Mrs Lyons were also very different on the inside aswell. Mrs Lyons house was very ornate with high ceilings which made it look very posh and grand. Mrs Johnstone’s house on the other hand was the total opposite. It was a small terraced council house with red brick and was a bit scruffy. She also mentioned in the play that all her furniture was from a catalogue. The showed the status of the of the different families very well. Flies, (part of the set) were flown in, for example a for sale sign which showed that many people were losing money, so they couldn’t afford their mortgage, so they had to sell their house. When Mickey and Linda went back to a council estate the old back wall came down which resembled their old life coming back again. Their house had an old second hand chair in it and a picture drawn by their daughter in the kitchen.
The lighting was also key in communicating to the audience the location and atmosphere. An example of this is the sunset at the end of the Johnston’s life on the council estate followed by a sunny “bright new day” in the countryside. The lightning was very bright and yellow to symbolise the sign of hope and the new experience they were about to discover. At the beginning of the production red light was used. Red is the colour of anger and in most cases blood. So being used in that scene the lightning could represent the blood shed, also there were wavy lines so that could also be represented with blood. In the scene where Mrs Lyons was saying what she could offer Mrs Johnstone’s unborn child a gobo was being used of a flower pattern. The lighting colours were pinks and reds. It gave the impression that they were both looking through tinted flower spectacles. A gobo was also used when Linda visited Mickey in jail; it was in the shape of the jail bars.
Aspects such as lighting and other special effects such as sound were used throughout the production to help create dramatic tension. One strong example when I felt really tense in the audience was the drug scene between Linda and Mickey. There were dramatic changes in the lighting and to red at one point. There was an increase in pace leading to the climatic moment then followed by silence, which really drawed the audience in. The atmosphere was very tense which was caused by the tense body language between the two characters on stage. Special effects were used right through the musical from when Eddie, Mickey and Linda were throwing stones when they were younger and you could hear the stones hitting the objects. They were also used when they all arrived at the countryside, the sounds of the birds and cows in the fields. At the end of the production special effects were also used when the gunshots were fired.
Working in conjunction with all these aspects to create atmosphere and emotion was the music. Specific songs were used at key moments in the musical to emphasise a situation or emotion. The sad and emotional “ Tell Me Its Not True” directly affected me. It was such a sorrowful song about a mother asking if it was real, that her two children had died. It was full of emotion and made the atmosphere very downcast and forlorn.
I though the Blood Brothers was a fantastic musical and I would definitely like to see it again. I really enjoyed the beginning of the production as it didn’t give too much away about the rest of the play and it kept you guessing. Blood Brothers is still relevant to people today as the different classes are still existent and your job still depends on your background. I saw the play before at the Phoenix Theatre in London and I thought it was much better there than at the New Wimbledon Theatre. I think that was because of the compactness in the Phoenix. It kept all the atmosphere together and as an audience we experienced the characters rollercoaster of emotions together. The overall message that the production left me thinking about was that you have to except people for who they are and that family is very important.