What I liked
The performances are wonderful and when these skilled singers break out into harmony, it’s just lovely. Sylvia Kolb tends to steal the show as Will but please don’t change that, it’s good. Tym Brown conjures Lucas in the most endearing way. Everyone shines – it’s a magical cast.
What I didn't like
Keeping in mind the press for the tribute indicates you don’t need to know the show to enjoy it – one might argue that you really kind of do. You can still enjoy the music, but given the double and sometimes triple casting, it will be hard for someone who has never seen the show to really get what is going on. It also ends without any hint of what show lovers saw in the finale for season 2, which feels odd for those who know what that final image was.
My overall impression
This was my last show of the night after a five-show day and it started at 11:00 pm so I was hoping it would be good. Suffice it to say, my hopes were not only met but surpassed before the company had even completed the first line of their first song. When you read ‘no jukebox, no parodies’ on the publicity materials, what that fails to relate is that the songs are all quite specifically derivative in one way or another of the best songs from the 80s. In this specific case, with this wildly talented cast, that is not a bad thing – especially at Fringe. You’ll hear songs that sound like ‘Jump’ and ‘Time After Time’ and ‘Footloose’ but all of that just helps to win you over if you are familiar with those masterworks. If you are not – you’ll be taken in by the talent, and there is a lot of it on display.
