The Time Traveller's Wife - Chester Storyhouse / Apollo

I don’t understand why producers go to the effort and expense of staging these shows, workshopping them, and then the score is not good enough. It seems so basic.

After these reports, unless this gets amazing reviews, I shall be skipping this one.

I don't think Dave Stewart has much talent as a musical dramatist - for odd reasons: rather than bringing the more unusual and creative impulses of his days in Eurythmics, he writes in an over-obvious (and somewhat cliched) pop Musical Theatre style. I've listened to three songs from this show, and one of them hits 'that' supposedly euphoric Musical Theatre harmony, that we've just heard too often over the last 20 years ('Rent' probably started it, or certainly cemented it as a 'go to'). Does it work anymore? Probably if you don't go to musicals that often.

I remember being suprised by the two big songs for Oda Mae in 'Ghost' - two generically lazy 'strong Black woman' songs, that absolutely didn't deserve Sharon D Clarke selling them to make them sound so much better than they were. To think he co-wrote 'Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves' as sung by Annie Lennox and Aretha Franklin. The real deal ebbed away long ago.

Really in two minds about going to this now. I dislike Joss Stone's music - it always seemed bland has never remotely grabbed me. Dave Stewart, on the other hand, was one of my early musical heroes. Eurythmics were my favourite band as a teenager (especially their earlier artier stuff - their first two albums are bonkers and brilliant) and his first couple of post-Eurythmics albums were touchstones for me circa 1990. But I never thought his work had a musical theatre feel to it, and Ghost was singularly unmemorable. I'll probably go if I can get a cheapish ticket at some point, just for old time's sake, but nothing I have heard about the show so far has really sold it to me. I can't see it lasting long - there is zero buzz around it.

Urgh, that's horrible.  Sad to hear you experienced that.

No excuse if she acted like that towards you.

The pre interval song (wine glasses in hand) I think was the most amateur and sadly cringeworthy song and ensemble routine I’ve EVER seen on a West End stage

As for the chorus boys holding their hands like limp wrists in the air to portray gay men at an art event in floral shirts / I actually found it offensive.

The show is a total mess.

Sounds like we might soon be in for more months of one night concerts, comedians etc in a Nimax venue on Shaftesbury Avenue.

In Chester it got standing ovations. 😂

I didn’t think it was great, but as 2 hours entertainment I thought it was ok. I liked the story and the characters, thought the central couple had decent chemistry, just the entire thing is let down by having music that is completely forgettable.

Storyhouse only opened in 2017 and were still finding their feet when the pandemic came along. Apart from a Christmas run of The Wizard of Oz and a rep production of A Little Night Music and The Crucible, most of their shows are quite small-scale - adaptations or cut-down versions of existing works, with a static set and the dreaded actor-musicians.

So for me personally I appreciated the fact that it was a massive step up in terms of staging and ambition, particularly as a follow-up to a rather weak Tim Firth musical. But sadly this promise hasn’t really been followed up on and it’s back to business as usual.

The cast recording is now on Spotify. I had a listen to what I guess is the end of Act 1, as it's track listed before Entr'acte.
It's called "Who Are We".

The lyrics so remind me of Theatreboard, it could become the anthem:

"We can build whatever home we need
Colour, class, or creed.  

We've only got one life to live
There just so much love to give"

I had this booked before reading the reviews here and went into the matinee today almost dreading it, but I actually enjoyed it. It’s not high art or a life changing musical but not everything has to be.
I think the music works better in context to the show when you’re in the moment, rather than just listening to it cold. But I’ll get the cast album, there’s a handful of songs I think I really enjoyed.

In the end, I’m glad I went today. I might even try to catch it again before it closes.

This was ok.

Joanna Woodward is terrific, and Tim Mahendran is great comic relief.

Unfortunately, most of the songs just do not reflect the weight of the story.

Some spoilers follow. . .

If you were time travelling about, being thrown randomly onto random streets in random times, starkers and with no money, you'd take that pretty damn seriously.

If you met a time traveller as a little girl, then got to meet him later for "the first time" as an adult, that would be an intense and astonishing thing.

But the music doesn't think any of this is intense or special at all. Neither does the music think that the connection of two such fascinating stories makes for a deep and passionate love story. Instead, the music wants you to feel like you're on holiday cruising in the sun in an open top sports car. The music feels like easy listening feelgood pop. Why?

"Journeyman," at the top of the second half is the first song to take the story seriously. It's intense, dark, exciting and excellent, and the effects are great. David Hunter performs it brilliantly.

After this kickstart, Joanna Woodward then gets to project some deep and tender feelings in "This Time," and Tim Mahendran is really funny singing "A Woman's Intuition," so the second half sticks the landing.

But because the first half is more like an inconsequential wistful and whimsical music video, that landing can only do so much.

Joanna Woodward is a terrific performer in everything I've seen her in (she was a memorable Tinker Bell in the Lost Boys Musical, for example) and she elevates the lead as much as anyone could!

The result is effective easy listening entertainment, pleasantly passing time, rather than the dramatically gripping astonishing love story this should be.

3 stars from me.