We take a look at what is being said about the West End transfer of the musical.
WhatsOnStage: ***** “Provoking fevered reactions – many audible gasps or sobs were heard after a variety of plot beats – while being resolutely, brazenly assured in its craft, makes Standing at the Sky’s Edge a towering feat of contemporary musical theatre. It stands as a shining tribute to the combined power of both popular music and stage storytelling, and subsidised and commercial theatre. Unmissable.”
London Theatre.co.uk: ***** “It’s that mix of earthy humour and starry-eyed hope, gritty realism and heartfelt empathy which gives Bush and Hawley’s homegrown hit its unique and utterly beguiling identity. The sky’s the limit for this total triumph of a British musical.”
Time Out.com: ***** “It doesn’t matter whether you’ve heard of Hawley or are a fan already. What most people enjoy about music is the way it makes them feel. And ‘Standing at the Sky’s Edge’ has all the feels – joy, lust, fear, sadness, despair, are crafted into an emotional edifice which stands nearly as tall as the place that inspired it.”
Lou Reviews: ***** “Lynne Page’s choreography is excellent, finding the emotional core to highlight the musical moments. Bush’s script has both social conscience and Northern humour. Hawley’s songs fit like a glove.”
Theatre Weekly: “Standing at the Sky’s Edge is undeniably a sensational new British musical, it has all the right ingredients, and the authority with which to speak about the impact of decades of government policies on cities like Sheffield, and by extension, the country as a whole.”
City Am: ** “Standing at the Sky’s Edge lacks the imagination to see its subject matter as anything other than a vessel for a few mediocre love stories. It takes a fascinating backdrop and uses it to enact a not-especially-interesting multi-generational soap opera. The truth can be harsh: some things were simply not meant to be put to music. “
The Arts Desk: **** “It’s the company’s commitment to the tale they are telling that makes this musical so appealing and that looks set on this evidence to extend the show’s life.”
The Telegraph: **** “The West End transfer of this show about a Sheffield estate offers rare emotional and intellectual ambition – and deserves to be a huge hit.”
British Theatre Guide: “However, the intense compression of tear-jerking scenes in the show’s last third sees the piece fall short dramaturgically. While all will want to buy into the social and personal catharsis offered by a vision of working-class Britain and the North, somewhere within its bones is a more carefully paced and modulated version.”
West End Best Friend: ***** ” The show is a huge feat for story telling, with every single member of the cast contributing to making this show as special as it is.”
Theatre & Tonic: ***** “Brilliantly directed by Robert Hastie, the cast and crew have made this musical into a towering monolith of modern musical theatre and an instantaneous modern classic. I would definitely recommend bringing tissues to this utterly heart wrenching, devastating, hopeful and completely uplifting show. If you are interested in a sweeping romantic score, a love letter to the steel city of the north and a hopeful message of finding your own community then this is the show for you.”
The Stage: *** “Chris Bush and Richard Hawley’s Sheffield-based musical transfers to the West End in a headlong production from Robert Hastie.”
The Arts Dispatch: *** “Not to open a debate about what defines a musical, but this feels more like a play with songs – songs that do not necessarily tie up with the content of the play. Remove the songs and perform Bush’s book and you will find a coherent and very good play. Remove the story and perform the songs and you will have an excellent concert. There is little within the songs that drive the narrative, and only so much that gives further insight into the character’s emotions or motives. How much you enjoy Standing at the Sky’s Edge will depend very much on how much you care about that. Still, you’ll be whistling As The Dawn Breaks for days afterwards.”
The Reviews Hub: *** 1/2 “Excellently orchestrated by Tom Deering and directed by Alex Beetschen, it features songs written by Richard Hawley, once a performer in Pulp. Playwright Bush describes her delight in being able to pick from Hawley’s back catalogue. But there is a sense of songs not always being a close fit with the drama itself. “
Broadway World: ***** “This is not a show for the cynical at heart and those who travel without a hankie may have to make do with an absorbent sleeve. Standing At Sky’s Edge is an epic musical for (and about) the ages. For those who haven’t seen it, prepare to fall in love. And, for those who have already seen it, be it in Sheffield or on the South Bank, prepare to fall in love again.”
The Spy in the Stalls: ***** “The cast is enormous, and extremely talented. Particular standouts are Rachael Wooding as practical and pragmatic Rose, Samuel Jordan as Jimmy, both lovesick and revolutionary, and Lauryn Redding as Nikki, Poppy’s bold and bolshy ex-girlfriend.”
Standing at the Sky’s Edge continues to play at the Gillian Lynne Theatre until the 3rd August. To book tickets click here.