Central Hall Musical Society: Jekyll and Hyde

You could be forgiven for having become sick of talk of Central Hall Musical Society’s Jekyll and Hyde; it was first announced as York’s major musical event of the year nearly seven months ago and has continued to be heavily publicised throughout auditions and in the run up to the show. Now, halfway through the academic year, a performance that is both exhilarating and disappointing hits the University’s largest stage, in one of the most anticipated performing arts events at the University for the year, following in the footsteps of RENT, Sweet Charity and The Full Monty.

Jekyll and Hyde takes Robert Louis Stevenson’s original novella and adapts it to the stage. Doctor Henry Jekyll tests a formula he has developed on himself, but it results in his slow transformation into the fearsome Edward Hyde, responsible for murders throughout London. Alistair Phillips’ portrayal of both characters is effective, the distinction between the two presented well. Almost perfectly cast despite an underwhelming performance of “This is the Moment”, his later “Confrontation”, a duet with himself, is simply stunning. Phillips in particular seems particularly unnerved by technical difficulties, performing with class and energy throughout.

Less breathtaking though still well-cast is Anna Czornyj as Emma, who struggles with tuning issues until her more successful duet, “In His Eyes”. Czornyj’s acting talent is far more impressive, and it is impossible to ignore the sheer difficulty in singing and acting in a part such as Emma, though the signs of a clear singing talent are present throughout the performance, and should not be taken as a reflection on Czornyj’s potential. Her acting shines through in some emotionally difficult scenes, distinguishing her performance from some less well-developed characters.

Florence Stratton undoubtedly steals the show as Lucy, both vocally and in her acting. Cast perfectly opposite Phillips and Czornyj, she gives the production a voraciousness and colour that is otherwise seriously lacking in a somewhat dull musical. Stratton takes the character of Lucy and combines her acting and singing talents to create a deeply resonant performance, injecting life into scenes and giving every song her all. Of particular mention is “Someone Like You” which is astonishing, as is a contrasting and yet equally powerful performance of “Bring on the Men”.

Also worthy of mention are James Ball, Rosie Fletcher and Max Tyler as Utterson, Nellie and Spider respectively, who all give strong performances alongside the three protagonists. Similarly, James Oliver’s musical direction is fantastic as he leads an energetic and almost faultless orchestra.

Jekyll and Hyde suffers from a number of faults. Often choreographed in canon or as staggered movement, the choreography – though otherwise extremely effective – can at least seem mistimed, as if the chorus and dance core are unsure when movements are to be performed. This problem is not helped by the sheer speed of some dance moves, in ambitious though extremely well-designed choreography that mixes a number of styles. Otherwise, however, the chorus and dance core are perfectly cast and directed, to Timms and Barker’s credit.

Microphones caused a whole host of issues on opening night, including heavy feedback, and a failure to mute one or two of them after an exit, giving the audience access to backstage conversation. The decision to leave backstage lights switched on also means that there is a permanent yellow glow emanating from behind the stage curtains, distracting throughout the performance. This reviewer also counted no less than three instances of actors opening the otherwise unused backstage doors at the top of Central Hall to peek onto the stage, in an extremely distracting and unprofessional manner.

Timms’ production’s biggest fault is the musical itself which often leaves much to be desired. Coming in at only 2 hours in length, plus interval, the musical is surprisingly short and leaves some characters undeveloped. Suffering from a weak first act, most direction is successful, with teething issues causing a serious problem for the cast and crew and a well-directed chorus of particular note. However, despite some shining moments, and well-designed costume from Daisy Bunyan and Florence Annan, the show is largely forgettable, and lacks a level of colour and showmanship that is disappointing in a space as large and as malleable as Central Hall. Even so, praise should be given to Phillips, Czornyj and Stratton for their performances, and, to a lesser degree, Katherine Timms, John Askew, Richard Barker and James Oliver for a somewhat successful direction of what is a challenging and tricky show to produce on a stage like Central Hall.