The Rise and Fall of Little Voice April 2013 Review

The Rise and Fall of
Little Voice
Opera House, Manchester

Reviewed by Rebecca Singleton

The story of Little Voice revolves around a young woman’s struggles, after the death of her father when she was young she finds comfort and security in playing the records they had once listened to together. By learning to impersonate these divas she finally finds a way to express herself out loud. After suffering years of emotional abuse from her alcoholic mother she eventually breaks out of her reclusive shell after being discovered singing one night by her mother’s boyfriend. He manages to trick her into performing on stage as an impressionist by using her dead father’s memory. The play shows the highs and lows she goes through to finally become her own person.

Jess Robinson (Little Voice) does an excellent job of portraying the characteristics of a recluse as well as belting out all the classics. The impersonations are uncanny not only in the way they are sung but the way she takes on the whole persona of the divas. The true extent of Little Voice’s mental instability comes about one night during an argument with Ray (her mother’s boyfriend) when she cleverly flips from diva to diva to express how she is feeling resulting in a five minute roller-coaster of a rant using lines from famous divas such as Shirley Bassey, Judy Garland, Marylin Monroe and Billie Holiday. For a newcomer I think Jess did a brilliant job.

Mari (Little Voice’s mother) played by Beverley Callard is pure entertainment from start to finish with her quick if somewhat stupid statements. She plays the drunk down to a tee. Her relationship with neighbour Sadie (Sally Plumb) causes much hilarity amongst the audience as she makes fun of her weight and naivety.  My favourite scenes between this comic duo is the dance they do in celebration to Jackson Five.

Ray Say played by Simon Thorp is the typically smarmy talent scout using his influence on people in any way he can to get what he wants. He turns on the charm in the first half of the play only to reveal his true colours during Little Voice’s mental breakdown.

Quiet Billy (Little Voice’s admirer) played by Ray Quinn is a much smaller part than I expected. He does a good job of the shy guy trying to coax Little Voice out of her shell although I didn’t think his part contributed as much as it could to the play.

I found the first half of the play quite slow and at times confusing. It was not till half way through the play that I realised that what I thought was a poor opening act was actually part of the play. However the second half was pure entertainment and although I knew how it ended (having watched the film) I found myself waiting to see how things played out. I expected to just be watching a light hearted easy watch play but what I got was comedy mixed in with underlying messages about family relationships, lower class society and mental instability. I would defiantly recommend this as a night out but for adults only the content and language is not suitable for children.

Rating: 4/5