I have a confession to make. I have never been devoted to the genre called reggae. I say this because I was cautious about going to see a musical based around the reggae god Bob Marley. I wondered how accessible it was going to be to someone who was not deeply rooted in the music and the Jamaican patois that goes with it. But I needn't have worried because this is one seriously enjoyable evening.
We are welcomed at start of the performance by a rasta DJ played by Craig Blake (one of the theatre boxes having been made over as a makeshift radio station) who basically eases us into the show with some phrases and cheeky banter with the audience as we head off into a world of dreadlocks and weed. You get the feeling this is gonna be one cool show, and the summer heatwave raging outside the theatre certainly helped set the scene for our trip to Jamaica.
Gabrielle Brooks (right) as Rita Marley
Right from the start, the show packs a punch as the entire cast are introduced to us as both actors and characters during 'Lively Up Yourself', before we go back to Marley's Jamaican childhood where he was separated from his mother and sent to live with a distant relative. Finding himself in Trenchtown, and new friends in Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer he discovers his love for music, and begins to explore traditional Jamaican folk with influences such as ska and US rhythm and blues.
And so the journey begins to creating a global superstar. On stage at the Lyric Theatre we have our own superstar in Michael Duke, he becomes Bob Marley before our eyes. He has the energy and vulnerability that this interpretation requires. Moreover he has the voice. It is as though Marley has been reincarnated before our eyes. His much put upon wife Rita is equally brilliant in Gabrielle Brooks, her huge soulful voice during 'No Woman No Cry' took the roof of the packed theatre. Together they are stage dynamite, Bob putting his creative pursuits ahead of Rita and eventually his marriage. She meanwhile knows the score, and suffers the humilation of his affairs and bastard offspring with fortitude. Duke and Brooks are worth the ticket price alone.
I don't want this to sound like its a duet of a show, the large ensemble of actors and singers are breathtakingly good. Shanay Holmes as Cindy Breakspeare delivers a fine 'Running Away' whilst Jacade Simpson and Natey Jones push the story along with some in house conflict among the Wailers. It's when the entire company are on stage that creates the biggest wow factor of the show, with a band which is literally making the floor vibrate due to its bass and the voices united, this is where the show ingrains itself into your soul.
Lee Hall has written a script which darts about in the timeline Bob's life, but there is enough of a linear throughline for us all to figure out where we are in the complex mess of relationships and his failure to address the melanoma found on his foot which spreads and ultimately kills Marley aged just 36.
As for the songs themselves I surprised myself by knowing more than I thought, a sure sign that Marley has ingrained himself deeply into popular culture. Classics such as 'Trench Town Rock', 'Is This Love', 'Jamming'. 'Exodus' and many more are given full on, high energy routines. However Duke's solo acoustic 'Redemption Song' lingers in the memory just as much as the bass bashing rasta rock.
The postumous Bob Marley: Legend album is one of the biggest selling of all time, with over 30 million sales. This show is a joyous celebration of Marley's timeless music, I may not be a long time devotee of reggae but I certainly appreciate a master of his craft and more so, a crowd pleasing musical which has the entire audience on its feet and celebrating a special life and contribution to global music. Consider me converted. Dat a mi show bwoi.
Rob Cope
For tickets check out the official website of GET UP STAND UP
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