Joseph

Adelphi Theatre
2/4/08 19.30pm

What’s it about?
“Way way back many centuries ago, not long after the Bible began.” Based on verses of Genesis. Joseph is the tale of a farmer’s son who discovers he is able to interpret and understand the meaning of dreams.

What’s good?
The performances in Joseph are, as you’d expect, excellent. Particular note has to go to Neal Wright, who, in the supporting role of Judah was able to steal the scene every time he opened his mouth. Lee Mead, the reason the majority of the audience have turned up to see the show, posses’ a boy next door charm, which he is able to exude in heaps as a more than capable leading man.

What’s bad?
The performance I saw was the second performance of the day, it seemed apparent to me that Lee Mead in particular struggled vocally at points. The sound operation was atrocious; frequently the actors were made un-audible by the lack of an ability to keep up with the play enough to turn the microphone on to the correct level at the correct time. The Adelphi theatre itself also hampered the production, with the audience being made to sweat in uncomfortably warm conditions and, if you were sitting in the Upper Circle, you were privy to a nice view of actor’s heads as you strained to work out what was actually occurring on stage. None of which, I might add, was mentioned when the ticket was purchased.

Overall
The audience went wild throughout the performance, from the first sight of Lee Mead in the title role to the final curtain. Joseph is a very entertaining family show, but with the traditional etiquette of theatre seemingly thrown out of the window because the audience present had voted for the lead in a BBC reality show. This reviewer found himself asking if the show and the experience was really worth the entrance fee.