One Singular Sensation After Another! – ‘A Chorus Line’ Review

Megan Buchanan reviews Leeds University Union Stage Musical Society’s take on ‘A Chorus Line.‘

Amid December deadlines, an electric crowd queued up outside of the Riley Smith Theatre, eagerly awaiting to watch the Stage Musicals Society’s latest production of ‘A Chorus Line’. Admittedly, this was the first show I had seen from the society, so I was apprehensive of what to expect, especially being a musicals-lover who is familiar with the long-standing history of the show. However, I was definitely not disappointed. The cast and crew masterfully adapted all the show’s nuances and expertly entwined the difficult stories with humour and comedy, ultimately creating a wonderful performance for all audiences.

‘A Chorus Line’ is a multi-award-winning show first performed in 1975 which tells the story of an audition process for a Broadway show where the intricacy of the dancer’s lives reveals the harsh truth of the dance world and some barriers dancers have to face to get a job and make a living. The stony poker-faced casting director, Zach, acts as almost a puppet master, easing the dancers to reveal more and more about their lives. The high-intensity audition comes to a halt when one dancer, Paul, falls and injures his knee; a poignant moment in the play that forces all the dancers to face the reality of how fickle a career in the industry is and that it can be taken away from them at any moment. The finale is an iconic one in theatre as the dancers re-enter the stage dressed in identical golden costumes and perform ‘One’, highlighting the unity of the dancers that are needed to put on a fantastic show, they are all as important as each other to create the moment on stage.

Upon entering Riley Smith on the 8th December, the audience was greeted with a classical stage layout that screamed traditional 1930s-like images of theatre and cinema spaces with its black draped curtains and gold centre piece. While not innovative, the traditional setting felt warm and familiar as I was transported to memories of old Hollywood films. From the excellent characterisation of the multi-dimensional characters, to effortless vocal capability when conquering the iconic tunes of the musical score, the cast and crew worked seamlessly to reproduce a show that not only greatly satisfied familiar audiences of ‘A Chorus Line’ but enticed new audiences as well.

Particularly great was the inclusion of Zack’s character (played by Jack Foster) sitting in the audience to begin with, this gave the illusion that the audience members were active participants in the audition process, by inviting us to judge and observe the dancers alongside the casting director. As the show unfolded, each actor gave a nuanced performance with excellent characterisation (in a way that made it hard to not fall in love with all the characters!). A personal standout moment from the show was Paul’s monologue, revealing his struggles with masculinity growing up, describing himself as incredibly ‘effeminate’. Erwan Fayolle’s portrayal of this character was captivating. His delivery of the monologue was gut-wrenching to watch but you simply could not pull your eyes away as you were left desperate to know more about this shy, complex character. A moment that even months later, I still think about.

Overall, the singing, dancing, and acting, alongside the staging and costumes, came together in a culmination that encompassed all of the show’s pivotal moments and themes. The message of the importance of live theatre was palpable in the performance. The cast and crew’s hard work and dedication was evident, and as an audience member it was difficult to not relate this to the current climate in the theatre industry—the after-effects of Covid and lack of investment from the government have consequently hurt the industry, but it is performances like this that show how alive theatre is and how important everyone involved in the production of shows for our enjoyment are.

‘A Chorus Line’ effectively shows the collectivism of live theatre and the work of a cast and crew. There is no better way of displaying this than the finale of ‘One’; a thrilling end to the show with its infamous choreography and catchy tune that had the entire audience on their feet. A truly magical moment where the actors were feeding off of the electricity and raucous applause of the audience and giving them even more.

A huge congratulations to the Stage Musicals Society and everyone involved for a spectacular run!

Words by Megan Buchanan

(Image Credits: Megan Buchanan and Millie Stephens (@milliesphotos on Instagram)