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REVIEW | Matthew Bourne's The Midnight Bell, UK Tour - The Lowry - Salford
- Harry Brogan
- Jul 2
- 3 min read
AD | Tickets gifted in exchange of an honest review.
Matthew Bourne’s The Midnight Bell is currently on its second UK tour, after its success when it had its initial debut in 2021. The show follows the plot of the book of the same name by Patrick Hamilton, where audiences step inside the Midnight Bell, a tavern where one particular lonely-hearts club gathers to play out their lovelorn affairs of the heart, with the characters being a wide variety of ordinary people, who come from cheap boarding houses to the tavern.
One of the many things I liked about the show was the set, designed by Lez Brotherston, it helped capture the mood that Bourne was achieving with the show. Whilst it seemed to be rather basic initially, it was rather extensive, with there being sections coming in and out appropriately, to give the audience the feeling of a 1930s Soho, with the majority of these set pieces being on the fly system. There are also physical set pieces, which are effectively used to show the differences between the pub used, and other aspects within the story; the use of the screens at the back were very effective on top of these physical set pieces. Whilst it was very rarely used, it was used to a level where it didn’t feel like it was overused, and when it was, it made sense to the story.
On the topic of Matthew Bourne, I have to mention the choreography. With Bourne's productions, there is always a high standard of choreography, and the Midnight Bell was no exception. There was a wide variety of different styles portrayed throughout the show, from more lyrical numbers to ballroom and some Argentine Tango. Alongside dancing through the physical set pieces, the cast were bringing them on with sometimes intricate choreography, which is one of the brilliant things Bourne has done with this production. This, alongside the music (by Terry Davis), helped create a brilliant atmosphere for 1930s London, with the high standards of both music and choreography being held throughout the roughly 1 hour and 50 minute show.
I also have to mention the wonderful cast of this show. For each performance, there are different casts, to help with rest periods, due to how intense the choreography can get within certain numbers. Various cast members who are returning to the show, including Daisy May Kemp, and there are a wide variety of new castings too, such as Cordelia Braithwaite. Everyone in the cast, whether they’ve been in the original production of this or not, was absolutely fantastic, and made the choreography seem so flawless, despite there being so many intense numbers with regards to its choreography.
Despite all this, I feel as if certain aspects of the show are lacking. As it was created in 2021, there was a focus in direction on isolation, due to the fact that there were obviously lockdown periods in 2021, and I feel that this isolation and loneliness wasn’t as consistent as it could’ve been throughout the show. Whilst it was present, it could’ve been portrayed in more evident ways, to show that it was one of the key themes of the show.
Overall though, there was an incredibly high standard of choreography and talent with the dancers, with Matthew Bourne once again creating a unique adaptation of a famous novel.
★★★★
Matthew Bourne's The Midnight Bell plays at The Lowry Theatre until Saturday 5th of July before continuing its UK tour until October
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