“London Road” reviewed by Julia W. Rath

[rating=3]The musical “London Road” tells the story of a relatively cohesive community in Britain that has been shaken by a horrific crime within their midst. When the bodies of five sex workers are found at 79 London Road, in Ipswich, the residents in this town (an hour northeast of London) become fearful, worried, and angry. With a murderer on the loose, it could be anyone! The house where the murders took place looks like everyone else’s in the neighborhood from its outside appearance. How dare the murderer ruin their relatively content and complacent lives by committing this terrible act of violence!

The premise of this story, written by Alecky Blythe (with lyrics by both Blythe and Adam Cork), is how do the people in a fairly close-knit community deal with the fact that these murders have taken place, literally under their noses? What we see in this show is how sixty-six people (played by eleven actors) adapt to changing circumstances as more and more developments in this story become known. We learn something about the likely perpetrator and his victims throughout the show, which—get this—is a lively musical! Although this may seem contradictory at first blush, the idea works rather well. It is a very interesting and thought-provoking way of injecting a bit of lightness into the larger story so that the horror of this tragic incident becomes understandable in dashes and dribbles and bytes. We see how the community suffers and eventually recovers and returns to its “happy place” before the event.

Throughout the show, we see “direction and movement.” Elizabeth Margolius’s direction is more coordination than choreography. Music direction by Andra Velis Simon is wonderful! The first act largely has to do with understanding the crime. Many residents, who are disturbed by this reality, try to cheer each other up by planting a lovely garden or flowerbox in the summer months and by relishing in the joy of the Christmas season. But others become angry and uncertain. Later, we learn a bit more informed about the prostitutes themselves and see their portraits flashed on two walls behind the audience. By now we already know who probably did the killings—and it’s a matter of seeing the cases wind through the court system and covered by the news media.

The ensemble consists of Rengin Altay, Christina Gorman, Alani Gross-Roberts, Rebecca Jordan, Tina Muñoz Pandya, Steve Peebles, Linda Reiter, Steven Schaeffer, Leslie Ann Sheppard, Anne Sheridan Smith, and Kendal Wilson. Musicians consist of Diego Salcedo (electric and acoustic guitar), Mike Matlock (flute, clarinet, also sax), Joe Sanchez (clarinet, alto sax, tenor sax), Lara Ochoa Regan (clarinet soprano sax, baritone sax), and Andra Velis Simon (conductor, keyboard).

Scenic design by Jack Magaw is relatively minimal, mostly consisting of venetian blinds in the four corners of the room, above which are tall platforms, where some of the characters might speak from. Levi Wilkins has great lighting throughout this show, especially the lighting of these blinds and platforms. Projection design by Smooch Medina is perhaps what is most noticeable and interestingly done. There are ten squares on each of two opposite walls of the room, where the video is being projected. We initially see the street sign “London Road” right-side up—and it turns 180 degrees when the community is in turmoil. Following that, the projections of the city throughout the show are intentionally shown upside-down, to reflect the fact that the people’s lives have been turned upside-down by this crime. The introduction of a video camera to show live newscasts and interviews with community residents adds contemporary touch of immediacy. I especially liked that the audience got to see the black and white photos of the five sex workers who were killed. Austin Winter’s costume design works well in that some items of clothing have been measured and designed in centimeters rather than inches! Sound design by Christopher Kriz is perfect, and props design and scenic change by Shayna Patel could not be any better. Above all, without Sammi Grant’s dialect coaching, we would have no show, since the setting is in Britain, and the community members largely speak with cockney accents.

Needless to say (and I’m not ruining anything here), the sign is turned back upright at the end when things finally get back to normal. But do we really ever get over our experiences with evil, except to say that thoughts about cruelty may eventually fade away in time? And, no matter what, we have to go on with our lives. Because of the music and the clever presentation, the show is more heartening than it might otherwise be, considering the grimness of the subject matter. But it is the unique and micro-perspective on such a tragic event that makes seeing this show so interesting—and watchable. We can easily place ourselves in this situation where something horrible has happened in our own neighborhood. How do we respond to it? Unfortunately, there will always be evil, and no locale is immune from it.

During the show I was thinking about Chicago’s experience with similar tragedies. For example, I’m old enough to remember the eight student nurses killed by Richard Speck in 1966 and the murders of (at least) thirty-three young men by John Wayne Gacy. The knowledge of these despicable events remained ever-present in the consciousness of those living in this area for many years to come. News broadcasts continued to offer fresh information that was very troubling on one level but assuaged our curiosity and our need for closure. I can only imagine how next-door neighbors must deal with such dreadfulness. But “London Road” breaks a lot of this down into fine detail, and in that way, the production is an unusual piece that is done very well.

“London Road” is playing through June 3, 2023, at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago.

General admission tickets are: $40 or $45, depending on the performance date.
$35 – seniors
$25 – under 30 (ID required at door)
$15 – students
Special seating – $52 (some performances only)

Performance schedule:

Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays – 8:00 p.m.
(No performances on Friday, April 28th and Friday, May 19th)
(Additional performance: 3:00 p.m., Saturday, June 3rd)
Sundays – 3:00 p.m.

Tickets can be purchased online at https://sgtheatre.org/london/, by calling 773-975-8150 or in person at the Theater Wit Box Office.

For more information about Shattered Globe Theatre and to learn about their other offerings, see: https://sgtheatre.org/ (and be sure to watch the display cycle through the various shows).

Shattered Globe Theatre is a resident company of Theater Wit. For more information about Theater Wit and to learn about their other offerings, visit: https://www.theaterwit.org/.

COVID safety: Shattered Globe Theatre currently requires all patrons to wear masks during the performance, except when actively drinking beverages. Visit the home page https://sgtheatre.org/ for the most up-to-date policy.

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “London Road”.