REVIEW | The Boy Who Sailed The Ocean In An Armchair, National Youth Music Theatre

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Reviewer - Hollie

*Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in return for an honest review

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Caution: This show includes themes of loss, death and grief. Please be aware that this production is 3 hours long. 

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In this latest production from the National Youth Music Theatre, a well-rehearsed and humorous cast of actors bring this adaptation of Lara Williamson’s novel to life. The musical is writer and composer Jordan Li-Smith’s debut and what a triumph it is from beginning to end! The story is brought to life by child protagonists Billy and Becket Rumsey who are played by James Breen and Sam Carter. They really are the stars of the show and they have a great bond together on stage. They both have great singing voices and have real promise for the future. 

In Curve’s Studio Theatre, with simple scenery, the focus is on Becket and his family and how they have been dealing with the past, with the loss of his mother at age 4 years old and how this affects their present day family dynamics. In the middle of the night, Becket and Billy are woken up by their Dad who tells them that they are moving away, just the three of them without their new ‘nearly mother’ Pearl. The boys find this very disorientating and confusing as they have to move homes and schools and make new friends. 

The boys become detectives and problem solvers and want to understand what is going on before Becket’s eleventh birthday in a month’s time. With weekly calls from their Nana, played by Alex Absalom-Sanchez, who has been living it up large on martini’s in Ibiza for the last two years, the production is awash with humour and the bright and colourful props add to the magic created on stage.

Becket and Billy have to navigate making new friends as well as try to understand what has happened between their Dad and Pearl. The production depicts a range of modern family dynamics and the emotions that different family members feel because of each other’s actions. The focus is on the character’s feelings and their development and understanding throughout the story. With the boy's turbulent childhood, a sea of emotions comes in waves for the audience. 

The story is mainly told through music and song as opposed to spoken word, and the catchy and uplifting songs build the momentum and keep the audience laughing throughout. The musical score is superb and with direction from Musical director Lewis Bell, the lyrics tell the story in a really enchanting way. 

Becket promises Billy the story will have a happy ending as that is all he is looking for, but will this ever happen? 

The company deserved a far bigger audience than they had and I urge you to see the show this week which is showing at Curve in Leicester until Saturday 19th August 2023. This show is certainly not a cranewreck and I cannot wait to see what the National Youth Music Theatre does next!