‘You’re The Voice’ Choir of Man, Arts Theatre, London 07.12.2022
Guest RoseBlogger Harri Douglas, headed into London to catch a few shows last December before the year was out! First up was Choir of Man:
To be brutally honest, I was not especially looking forward to this one. Of all the shows I want to see it wasn’t in my top ten, possibly not even my top twenty. The concept sounded a bit naff to me – men at the pub. The tagline only confirmed my fears: ‘Music. Mates. Good Times.’ Do we need a homage British male culture? It wasn’t my choice, but what I’d heard about it was predominantly positive, so I resigned myself to being as open-minded as possible and giving it a fair crack.
First previewing at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2017, Choir of Man made its West End debut in at the Arts Theatre in 2021. Described on their website as an uplifting celebration of community and friendship with something for everyone – including free beer! You are invited to enjoy 90 minutes of feel-good, foot-stomping entertainment unlike anything else in the West End. Welcome to The Jungle, the local where our group of nine lads routinely ‘gather’. Part musical, part immersive experience it seems, the audience are invited up on stage before the show starts to have a beer with the performers. It’s a relaxed atmosphere; buzzier than your usual wait for things to kick off. The actors are genuinely chatting with people and happy to have pictures taken with us ordinary folk in attendance.
No prizes for guessing, then, what the first number of the night is. There’s definitely something a
little strange about a Guns N Roses tune with more of a folksy, pop feel than its hard rock origins,
but it is delivered with such energy that I start to think ‘Ok, this might be better than I thought.’
Enter The Poet, played by Denis Grindel (instead of Ben Norris) with no small amount of loveable
charm. He is one of several cast changes from the programme; the other two are Mark Irwin as The Barman (rather than Lemuel Knights) and Lucas Koch as The Beast (instead of Owen Bolton). All delivered solid performances so I didn’t feel we missed out. Along with Levi Tyrell Johnson, aka The Hardman, these were my favourites. Denis narrates throughout, which means he does most of the talking. It is suitably cheesy (which was somewhat anticipated) as he predominantly talks in rhyme. It’s unclear as he gives us small glimpses into the lives of each character – and how each got their nickname – how much is truth and how much is fiction, but I’m not sure that really matters.
It was funnier than I thought it would be; there were plenty of laughs to be had. The urinal scene
where they sing ‘Under the Bridge’ by the Red Hot Chilli Peppers is particularly memorable, although some I’m sure might find it tasteless. It was also more moving in places than I expected, and I think other reviews which criticise its lack of substance/depth don’t give it credit for. At one point the subject came round to losing a father, and a lady in front of me who had recently experienced such a loss cried throughout ‘You’re the Voice’. ‘The Parting Glass’ – delivered as pure acapella, rather than with a band like the rest of the songs – was really rousing.
The song list has been carefully crafted to ensure that there is something for everyone. They’ve
played it very safe, with well known and loved hits from Adele to The Proclaimers.
What makes it different from anything else on the West End? The audience interaction is relatively unique, although we’re starting to see more of it (I’m thinking KitKat Club’s Cabaret and the dinner pit at Moulin Rouge). Two women from the audience were pulled up at different points to be serenaded – I think this could have been quite cringeworthy had the women they picked not been incredibly good sports and added their own comedy. Other than that, I’m not sure anything substantial by way of differences. A lack of interval. Beer mats and packets of crisps were thrown out into the audience. A few beers were distributed (thankfully
not airborne).
Is it one of the ‘greats’ of the West End? Probably not, but that’s not what it’s trying to be. You have to take it for what it is, and that’s harmless fun. I had a good evening out, which was a pleasant surprise given I was quite sceptical before I entered the theatre. I’m glad to have seen it, and if someone asked me I’d tell them to give it a go.
Tickets to see Choir of Man at the Arts Theatre are available until the end of May 2023 and can be found here.
