School of Rock

 School of Rock The Musical - Thursday 9th September 2021, Hull New Theatre

Well, this blog is a month late, but it's given me some time to appreciate and enjoy parts of the show I missed when watching for the first time, as a recording of the show is available on YouTube which I saw after.

The School of Rock is one of my favourite feel good comedies. I remember watching this when I was 9 and instantly fell in love with this film. For me, this film ages like fine wine, and it's one of those films I turn to if I’m feeling down in the dumps.

The majority of jokes in the film are not outdated and the songs are still great to this day, I appreciate the lyrics more now i'm older, especially in songs like 'Fight' and 'Heal Me'. Oh and fight will always be the best song to open the film.

I had mixed hopes going into this show. Knowing it's done by Andrew Lloyd Webber, I was concerned they would turn a strong film, into a cheesy production with cringy songs, but I was wrong.

 

First off, I’ve got to give hats off to all the cast for their first performance in over 15 months, and the children’s first ever performance with an audience. I could feel every single cast member having the time of their lives, and their faces of joy and relief at the end of the show. The show I watched was their very first performance. They were due to begin a few days earlier but due to covid -19 impacting technical rehearsals, the performances were pushed back a couple days, so this was an extra treat.

VIDEO: https://twitter.com/NewTheatreHull/status/1436289234046963725 

 

What I loved most about this show were the sets. The show wasn't technically advanced, but all the sets were traditional, very detailed were constantly changing after 5 minutes. I loved the props in Dewey's bedroom, and especially in the school classroom and staff rooms.

 

Another element I enjoyed about the show was the story and the songs.

In the musical, they focused more on the school children's relationship with their parents, how they never listen to them, and only want to end up in certain jobs. Every single classroom pupil had an amazing personality each, and none of the cast was forgettable. My personal favourite was Billy, or "fancy pants". Every single line he had or action was just hilarious. The song 'if only you would listen' gave the audience a more emotional and in depth connection to the children. Jake Sharp as Dewey was brilliant. I just loved how energetic he was during the whole performance, and some of the jokes he said had me in stitches!

The story also focused on the head teacher’s (Rebecca Lock) past in the second act, and how her and Dewey both came from similar backgrounds. As expected, they end up having a romantic connection, but this didn't feel forced.

I also liked Ned's (Matthew Rowland) relationship with Dewey, and how they secretly play guitar hero whist his partner was out. This gave us a better understanding of their friendship, and how Ned missed his old days in rock.

 

There was a Sound issue after the first song where one of the microphones on the backstage was left switched on, however this was fixed within a few seconds. Having recently done a sound mixing course for theatre, I understand and appreciate how difficult it is to mix a show line by line, plus mixing a three live bands (main band, the school of rock band and no vacancy), along with dozens of actors and sound effects is no easy tasks, but there was no problems for the rest of the show. The sound acoustics was brilliant, and it felt like we were in the middle of a live concert, so hats off to the team.

 

My only minor criticism is No Vacancy playing one song twice in the show. 

"I'm too hot for you" was played at the very opening of the show to introduce Dewey Finn's character, then the start of the battle of the bands scene. I personally felt like the second time they played this was mainly to fill time, and it would've been nice to see 'Heal me' played live. Maybe they couldn't because of copyright, or they can't perform it vocally, but it didn't impact the show.

 

Overall, I had a blast watching this show. The musical lived up to the film and still provided a feel good atmosphere. I'd personally recommend this show to people over the age of 10 due to some strong language, but this is a musical not to be missed to anyone who loved the film!