This performance could be described as an hour long monologue set to music.
The main protagonist, John, uses Siri as a sort of therapist throughout the performance. The music is mostly performed live by a band but a recording of the piano parts is also played through an amplifier on stage. The story revolves around a man who decides to kill himself, but not very much more. It sorely lacks action and more characters. An ensemble would have worked very nicely in this piece, they could have multi-roled as the few characters mentioned in Let’s Grab A Coffee Soon and provided the piece with more action and musical complexity. As it is, this performance could be described as an hour long monologue set to music.
The music itself is catchy and nicely written, with melodies that are easy to learn. It is slightly reminiscent of Jonathan Larson’s style, pop-rock inspired by jazz. The songs transition nicely into each other with clever reprises and repeated motifs. However, for a show that starts at 10pm it contains way too many ballads. I get that this show is about depression, but it is also a musical.
Every story should have an arch. However this show completely flatlined. Nothing seems to be escalating at any point in the play, not even his desire to kill himself. The most upbeat song was about the joy and release one can get from drinking strong wine. As cliché as it is to have a character turn to drink when his life is turned upside down the song provided some much needed comic relief. It was well written musically and lyrically and nicely sung. With work on the lack of action and the addition of a few more characters this could become very good.
