Having heard about Nearly Weds from last Year’s Fringe, I wanted to go and see what all the fuss was about. The “fuss” in question was positive feedback I heard about the show, most of which was apparent when the lights came up in theSpace Venue 45.
Runaway Bride Lily and scared-of-commitment Jake both leave their partners after almost marrying them. Running away from responsibility and trying to make sense of things, they both get into each other’s orbit when Jake’s Brother is involved with Lily’s new best friend. Phone calls are placed, songs are sung, chocolate bars are used as puns in this 50 minute cheesy, but incredibly fun romcom musical.
Sarah Alexandra Brown plays the runaway Bride Lily. Brown’s excellent vocal control and emotional vulnerability is front and centre. Brown imbues Lily with an innocent determination that is easy to follow as the story progresses.
James Turner plays the cowardly Jake, who bolts it when his girlfriend reveals they’re pregnant. Turner shows off some great vocals here, utilising dynamics and tone to portray the lead lover who the audience knows that can rely to come good in the end. Leading man, star quality vibes from Turner throughout.
Katherine Leyva plays the bubbly and exorbitant Gail and briefly the over-bearing mother-in-law-to-be Cecile. Leyva plays that contrast to Lily’s more inward character perfectly with Gail. Leyva steals every scene she’s in and with effortless projection delivers some powerhouse vocals. Some excellent visual gags/puns with chocolate bars are the show’s hidden gem thanks to Leyva’s pitch-perfect delivery.
Billy Robinson plays the loveable Brian. Him and Leyva’s Gail are loveably awkward and the audience beg for them to get together from the first instance. Robinson lacks a little confidence with singing compared to his co-stars but his physicality more than makes up for this as he uses his body to emphasise every single movement.
Elise Burt plays Sophia, Ruby & Sadie. With the tough task of bouncing between 3 roles, Burt handles them all with ease and makes each feel different and unique. Burt’s voice doesn’t received as much time to shine as the others but uses each small instance to make sure an impact is made.
Becca Linden is Crystal. An audience favourite, achieving laughs from merely walking on stage, Linden proves real the adage “there are no small parts, only small actors”. Linden’s Crystal is hilarious and fully fledged even as the one with the least amount of stage time.
Jasmine Alice’s writing & composition is incredibly strong. The music is composed excellently and each piece suits their respective characters. The Melodies and harmonies are nothing ground-breaking but each one is utterly effective in achieving the desired emotion, impact and tone while sitting perfectly in each performer’s range. The lighting on display from Lola Varez excellently highlights the space and each performer within, using solo spots to great effect and some dynamic lighting that was unexpected but very cool.
Nearly Weds is a musical with some fab songs (“Proud” & “Me and My Little One” being delicious little stand out solo’s) that is well underscored through scene transitions, and that is cunningly weaved together so that plot lines and character arcs intertwine in an almost Love Actually romcom type way that ultimately satisfies after the final bows. An audience interaction moment was a fun touch, but was utterly pointless after one realises that audience member in question has nothing to do but sit on stage. To make this moment more Fringe-like and to make it be more worthwhile, perhaps some thought into how they can include the participant more would help this moment reach its full potential. The final act/resolution of the story is tied up in a bow rather quickly, but that is partly to be expected in a 50 minute limit to deliver an entire musical. An unfortunate bit of confusion or missed cue right at the end during said speedy emotional conclusion that made a squirmingly awkward 40 seconds or so means that this review’s rating suffers slightly, but that is more a reflection of the performance on the night, not the overall piece that the team has on their hands here. This show is something incredibly promising; a very strong cast, clever music and a decent story make Nearly Weds a show audiences should definitely add to their Fringe Schedules and catch before it’s too late.
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