Blood Brothers Royal and Derngate Review
Blood Brothers
Royal & Derngate, Northampton
24-29 March 2014
Reviewed by Karen Curson
The Royal & Derngate theatre is situated in the centre of Northampton and is well signposted and easy to find. There are plenty of car parks and road side parking within a short walk of the theatre.
The theatre entrance is spacious and you don’t feel packed in. The box office was easily located and there were plenty of polite, friendly staff to help with queries. There was a café and bar area which was plenty big enough to cater for the audience.
The auditorium is stunning with lovely lighting and décor. We found there was plenty of leg room when seated.
On arriving at the theatre, I knew nothing about Blood Brothers, ( I went with a friend who had seen it plenty of times and asked her not to tell me anything) and was expecting some kind of gangster show. How wrong was I!!
Writer, Willy Russell transported us back to 1950’s Liverpool in a show that manages to reach every one of your emotions in just a couple of hours. The first act introduces us to a large working class family and an upper class couple desperate for a baby.
Mrs Johnstone has just had her husband walk out on her after finding out she was pregnant again, but, this time, with twins. She talks to her employer, Mrs Lyons about it and very quickly, a plan is hatched where one of the babies will be given up to Mrs Lyons. It seems like a wonderful idea, however, to keep the secret, the twins must never meet. At the age of 7, they have a chance meeting and soon become firm friends, blood brothers! The two mothers forbid the boys from seeing each other and so, Mrs Lyons and her family move to the country. Mrs Johnstone and her family are rehoused to the country and the boys meet once more.
Through the fabulous music and powerful narration by Kristofer Harding we see the twins Eddie and Mickey and their close friend Linda growing up and relationships changing.
Whilst act 1 is humorous yet still emotional, act 2 becomes darker yet intriguing. I found myself really feeling for the characters and was on the edge of my seat in places. The ending is tragic and the cast clearly put their all into every performance. At the end of an amazing performance, the cast and crew closed the curtains to a well-deserved standing ovation.
The set for this show is fairly simple but impressive. I loved the fact there weren’t pauses in the show to change scenery, it was all done on stage and the props were brought on and off by the cast but done in such a way, it just looked natural.
Overall, we had a fantastic memorable evening and would definitely visit the theatre again and most definitely so to see Blood Brothers again.
We consider the ticket prices as very reasonable for a West End show on tour.
Rating: 5/5 
Tickets cost from £15.50 to £32.50 (plus £2.50 transaction fee).
For more information or to book tickets click here or call the box office on 01604 624811.
Royal & Derngate, Guildhall Road, Northampton, NN1 1DP | Box Office 01604 624811
