What I liked
A fine score. Lush orchestration. Excellent vocalists. Elaborate, well-rehearsed choreography. Clever costumes. And an intriguing premise: a musical about a chess game during the Cold War era. Sounds like a winner, and it largely was. But…
What I didn't like
There was just one glaring problem: it’s too damn loud. Every time the music reached a forte, we had to stick our fingers in our ears to preserve our hearing. Others around us were doing the same. Further, the excessive sound level muddied the high frequencies, making the lyrics hard to follow. Why amplification is needed at all in a tiny venue like the Jaxx, with only a couple of rows of seats, is beyond me.
At the break, our party of five decided we couldn’t risk our ear drums any more, and departed, missing “One Night in Bangkok” and other good stuff. Some of us had seen Chess when it was new, and we were so looking forward to this production. Please, please, please, tone down the tunes.
My overall impression
The show is beautifully mounted and performed. One of the best things you’ll see at the Fringe.
