REVIEW | The Commitments UK Tour

★★★

Reviewer - ANNIE

I must admit that I knew very little of the show, and its predecessor film adaptation, so I walked in with a completely open mind for the evening. Although, like many I knew the odd song, I know very little about the band and their history. 

Starting in a classic Irish pub, the mood is instantly set that the audience are in for a fun night out. The cast are nothing but lively and enjoyable to watch. The costuming is perfect throughout - it doesn’t try to over glamourise the humble storyline and setting, which works perfectly with the show. I’ve always loved 80’s fashion and the costume department has perfectly captured the trends and styles without over embellishing or glitzing it up.

Applause must be given to the cast who were nothing short of impeccable. Lead by Ian Mcintosh as Deco, whose voice is sublime, brings the music alive and creates some hilarious audience participation at the end. All cast members were equally as strong vocally and brought real passion and soul to the music. 

I also am a huge fan of when the musicians are used on stage as I think it is such a clever and powerful move to take artistically, especially in this case as the musicians created the band for the singers, making it fully immersive. It also brings such recognition to the musicians, who although do a wonderful job at every show, can easily be forgotten about when the focus is just on the performers on stage. I really enjoyed this element and it again brought the music to life just that little bit more, which I think soul music is all about - not just the vocals.

However, sadly the storyline of the show really fell short. It started off really well, but felt very thin from a third of the way in - filled out with a lot of spoof jokes and acting scenes which did very little to progress the story. 

It is a shame that the story was so flat as the music was so powerful, it just seemed to have a disconnect throughout. 

Many scenes also felt like they’d been added just to facilitate a costume change or some set movement. Again, humour was heavily used in these moments so it was somewhat enjoyable, I do feel like it could’ve done more in places.

The staging for the production, although cleverly designed and certainly impactful, was not the greatest i;ve seen in terms of sleekness. I am conscious to remember that this is a touring production so certain elements may be down to how the set has to be put up and down quickly, but some issues did arise which perhaps could be dealt with. A personal moment to enjoy was the stage runner not quite getting the set up in time and closing doors as the scene started. Please note this is not a bash as it was brilliant to watch - just kind of distracts from the show. 

Despite this, the show ended with a brilliant set of The Commitments’ hit tunes, which got the audience on their feet dancing and really immersed the show in the space. 

Although not a rave review, I do believe that If you’re looking for a fun, light relief night out of good music and great singing, The Commitments is worth catching whilst on tour.

*Disclaimer: AD | Gifted Tickets

Tour dates and tickets are available through the website.