BONNIE & CLYDE - Old Joint Stock Theatre (03/10/25)

Latest Old Joint Stock production takes us on a rocky yet riveting joy ride

The folly of youth, in many cases, provides ample opportunity to better oneself, and learn from the mistakes we make as fuelled by an adolescent lack of good judgement, or in far less common instances, lead you down a far darker path, from which you are unable to backtrack. Infamous 1930s American outlaws Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow undoubtedly fall into the latter camp, with the troubled upbringing, and subsequent criminal lifestyle of one leading inexorably to the other’s downfall, and ultimately the pair's eventual demise.

Our setting is 1930s West Dallas, Texas, and aspiring actress Bonnie Parker is working as a waitress, dreaming of moving out of "the devil's back porch", and becoming the next Clara Bow in Los Angeles. She meets charming but misguided young Clyde Barrow, a career criminal who has been in and out of prison since childhood, and the young pair fall for one another, with promises of stardom being a major catalyst of Parker's infatuation. What ensues is an impassioned but deadly three year relationship, that ultimately leads to the couple being fatally apprehended by police.

Samuel Murray and India Lily Cooper (credit: Perro Loco Production)

The superbly talented Old Joint Stock creative team have fine tuned their collective ability to transform the intimate space to a fine art, and this latest production is no exception. Set, costume and lighting designers George P Martin and Joanne Marshall have put their stamp on proceedings masterfully, with scenic design that captures the aesthetic of the period to a tee, and though the costumes for our titular twosome may deviate from what we're perhaps used to, there is no less attention to detail.

As ever though, the big draw for this musical is Frank Wildhorn and Don Black's rip roaring, rockabilly and gospel inspired score, full of character and perfectly encapsulating the feel of 30s rural southern USA. Musical director Ben Barrow (appropriately named) leads a band of four players, in a condensed orchestration of the musical, and though we occasionally lose a slight element of character due to omission of certain instrumentation, the essence of the overall soundscape is retained marvellously, most notably through Barrow's fantastically skilful piano abilities.

If there was one other minor critique in terms of the presentation of the score, it would be relating to the scenes featuring the preacher. I did appreciate the idea of gender swapping this character, and Hannah Victoria's performance was terrifically present and full of guts, however it did feel like retaining the original key felt like it fell outside of her comfortable range, as we did lose some of the power lower down, to which we are akin through having this role typically played by a baritone. In that respect, I just wonder if it would have been beneficial to alter the key to really allow Victoria to show us what she can do vocally, as her lower notes got lost among the rest of the ensemble and the orchestra.

The company of Bonnie & Clyde (credit: Perro Loco Production)

That aside though, this was a sensational cast, with not a single weak link to be found. Davis Weaver displayed a side to Ted that I hadn't seen before, he was sweet, somewhat naive, and determined, but there was also a fierceness about the character that I hadn't seen before, and it was mesmerising, especially as we entered the climax of the second act. Faye Campbell was beautifully measured, with her headstrong, no-nonsense portrayal of Blanche, and Killian Lefevre as Buck gave a bombastic, tour-de-force performance.

In our two leads though, portrayed by India Lily Cooper and Samuel Murray, we have a couple of exciting emerging performers showing us that they mean business. Cooper, though occasionally a touch pitchy in terms of vocals, gave us a sense of playful innocence and naivety, yet plenty of gumption and self-assuredness where needed. It was Murray though who really stood out, it's rare you experience such an exceptional professional debut performance, and our Clyde Barrow looks like he's been doing this for years, giving a perfect blend of charisma and menace, you fear him, yet are completely drawn in by his innate boyish charm. In particular his rendition of "Raise a little hell" elicited goosebumps galore, he lacerated that vocal, and his sheer ferocity dropped collective jaws.

There were a couple of scenes and transitions where the direction by Emily Suzanne Lloyd felt a touch messy, for example during the opening number, where I felt there was too much going on, and the inclusion of the ensemble wasn't necessary, as it drew too much attention away from the title character exposition; similarly in the act 1 finale, the number felt overcomplicated through excessive choreography. Overall though, this is a gripping, compelling new staging of a modern classic, where the performances and scenic design really help it drive forward and "raise a little hell".

★★★☆☆

"Bonnie & Clyde" runs at the Old Joint Stock until the 2nd of November (book tickets)

{PR/Gifted tickets}