One Touch Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, until 15 December 2007

John Kielty (Rory), Houston (Harry), Gerry Kielty (Jimmy), Scott Garnham (Zombie), Nick Underwood (Zombie). Credit: Ian Rhind Photography.

THE HIGHLAND QUEST has been achieved. The much-delayed premier of Sundowe has inaugurated Eden Court’s new venue, the somewhat awkwardly-named One Touch Theatre. Was it worth the wait, on both counts?

Let’s take the theatre first. This is the studio theatre which both Eden Court and Inverness have needed for many years. But it doesn’t feel like a studio-it feels like a big, serious, theatre space. The stage area is large (large enough to hide the entire band offstage). The seats are spacious and comfortable and the sightlines are excellent.

Inevitably, Sundowe doesn’t show off the versatility of the space to full effect because the production uses a classic end-on, fourth-wall set up with side drapes. But even in such a conventional format this feels like a highly adaptable and welcoming venue that I have no doubt will quickly become an essential part of Inverness’s cultural mix.

And Sundowe certainly did demonstrate the space’s technical virtuosity with multiple lighting, projection and sound effects, and a dazzling use of gauzes and backdrops.

So, to the Quest itself. Viewers of MacMusical will appreciate the long and complex process which has led up to this final stage, the full production of the Kielty Brothers’ magnum opus. Hundreds of initial hopeful entries, a very long list of over forty who benefited from a ‘development weekend’, a long short list of ten, and then the final five who had the benefit of a highly impressive showcase evening in Ullapool in the summer of 2006.

And after some nail-biting suspense, the announcement that The Sundowe, from Edinburgh, had won out over local favourite Whisky Kisses. Now that we see the end result of all this planning and filtering, has it been worth all the effort?

Even those of us at the Quest final who had been rooting for the musical from the Right Lines team of Dave Smith, Euan Martin and James Bryce, had to admit that on the night the Kielty brothers had stolen the show with their energy, wit, inventiveness, and sheer charm.

That sample of The Sundowe rightly got a standing ovation. But the questions remained-could those fragments be turned into a full-length show, and could John and Gerry Kielty deliver as lead performers, as well as being writers and composers with third (never to be pictured) brother James?

Well, let me say right away that Sundowe (they dropped the definite article just before the launch) is a terrific evening’s entertainment. It’s fast-paced, high octane, screamingly funny, and (by the reactions of the second night audience) should appeal to anyone from eight to eighty who isn’t chronically averse to extreme silliness.

To try to describe the plot of Sundowe would take more space than even these extended web reviews permit. Just imagine The Monkees crossed with Buffy the Vampire Slayer as reimagined by the team behind The Mighty Boosh and you might get some idea.

There’s Vampires, Zombies, Ambient Police, an alternative version of Scottish History, Greyfriars Bobby, and, most dreadful horror of all: the all-male flat. John and Gerry Kielty, and the wonderfully deadpan Houston, make up a busking band called The Martians. Unless they’re around to play the truest music when the Sundowe comes, we’re all doomed. And buskers have been banned….

Right from the impossibly catchy opening number, Our Home, which really does deserve to be the new national anthem, the template is set-wacky, sharp, one-liner lyrics allied to good tunes, and a fine sense of sending up the musical as a medium (especially the more pompous side of Lloyd Webber).

The quality of some the dialogue suggests that BBC Scotland would be well advised to sign up the Kieltys to script a new comedy series that would both appeal to a younger audience and be, for once, actually funny.

The highly skilled and versatile cast seize every opportunity that the score gives them to put across their big numbers. And this really is a Scottish musical, as not just every cast member, but the director, designer, choreographer and music director are all Scottish or based in Scotland.

But is it going to make the leap to a West End run and international franchise? Have Cameron Mackintosh and his team helped to bring into being the next Les Mis or Phantom of the Opera (or, given the subject matter, Rocky Horror Show)? I’d say that’s still a tough question.

The show is very Scottish and, while references like Greyfriars Bobby and Edinburgh Castle have international resonance, a lot of the humour depends heavily on local knowledge. John and Gerry Kielty are terrific performers, with charisma in spades-though they’ve also got the ability to blend into the ensemble when necessary-but is the show strong enough to survive long runs or multiple productions without their stage presences?

And the ending is still problematic. Even Wagner fans can admit that, after all the hype, the Prize Song at the end of The Mastersingers comes as something of a disappointment. So it is with the Truest Music-after such a delicious parade of pastiche and parody, it’s hard for writers, performers and even the audience to make the leap to heartfelt sincerity, and I don’t think they quite pull it off.

The whole momentum of the show is toward a final big, up-tempo number that gets us up on our feet applauding. But that number actually comes two thirds of the way through, and Sundowe ends on an oddly muted note.

But don’t let me put you off-Sundowe is a great show that will send you out into the night humming the tunes, and the next morning you’ll still be chuckling over the jokes. As one of the large panel of readers who helped to filter the earlier stages of the Highland Quest, I know just how bad some of the entries were!

Despite that, the Quest process has produced a genuinely inventive, fresh and funny musical that has broad appeal and should draw a younger audience to the format. Don’t miss it. In fact, go and see it as soon as possible. Even on the second night some of the cast were suffering what might be called ‘Maria syndrome’ and their voices may not last the run!

© Robert Livingston, 2007

Links

• Eden Court Theatre
• Sundowe
• Review of the Highland Quest Final