Road Show | Short Review

Of all Sondheim’s musicals, Road Show, notoriously, was the longest in gestation. Ironically for a show depicting lives and how they are lived, Road Show opens and closes with death. People gathering at the bedside of the late architect Addison Misner (a sensitive Oliver Sidney) sing a lament but this is no gloomy affair.

The greatest strength of Amanda Noar’s fleet-footed production is the vocal casting. Under Harry Style’s musical direction, and supported by a notably crisp band, the performers never sound strained. The overly schematic writing sometimes compromises the emotions Sondheim aimed for in his songs, not helped here by some under-examined relationships on stage. But the sincerity and, for the most part, effective restraint of the playing makes for an intriguing evening.

Road Show is booking at Upstairs at the Gatehouse, London until 12 January 2025. For more information and tickets, visit upstairsatthegatehouse.com

PRODUCTION CREDITS

Road Show by Stephen Sondheim (music, lyrics), John Weidman (book)

Upstairs at the Gatehouse, London, 18 December 2024

Cast Oliver Sidney, Reece Richardson, Rhys Lambert, Folarin Akinmade, Robert Finlayson, Emily Friberg, Madeleine Morgan, Katherine Strohmaier

Director Amanda Nour

You can read our full review in the February issue of Musicals magazine out 31 January – subscribe today!