AW King and Paul Vitty have written an entertaining and poignant theatre piece, enhanced with live music, which digs under the skin of a rock star’s ego and internal drive, as two has-beens attempt to record the comeback album which will remake their careers.
An entertaining and poignant theatre piece, enhanced with live music, which digs under the skin of a rock star’s ego and internal drive
Music fans will revel in the scene where album titles are bantered between the pair; don’t miss the face-off of one upmanship, where Vitty is ridiculed for allegedly only being capable of playing three chords. The show features a plethora of jokes for music aficionados. A comical scene includes repartee which bemoans the struggle to find a decent drummer. This is used as an excuse for failing to create a hit single, which entertains the audience. The protagonists reminisce about rock and roll milestones such as being bought your first guitar, your first underage pint in a pub, and the impact of seeing your first cover band, underpinning the show with poignancy. Comedy lines such as being a ‘goth father’ and ‘post ironic lyrics on the cusp of satire’ accompany rock and roll name drops of Bowie, Eno and Iggy. A particularly entertaining anecdote entailing the theft of Keith Richard’s ashtray sets up the narrative journey towards recording a new album.
Referenes to The Fall, Nine Inch Nails, Smash Hits and Guns N Roses place the piece within a musical timeline. Dialogue considers whether being an obscure ‘no-one’ in the rock and roll world can play to your advantage, as the two argue about who had the most fans, in their heyday. Much audience laughter is created during a fun section where the album artwork is planned.
Vitty’s character loses control in a powerful scene where he ridicules the vocalist, picking up lyrics and dismissing them, in an offhandly menacing manner. King’s vulnerability is displayed in his reaction. Vitty plays a strong and convincing father, displaying an emotional vulberability which drives the narrative of the sub-plot. Intimacy and vulnerability are conveyed in a moving scene about his son.
Don’t miss Vinyl Encore, where you can decide for yourself who may be responsible for the menacing knocking on the door, and whether there really are two women, locked in the bathroom. The show is definitely replete with tales of excess, stupidity and dark secrets lurking beneath the surface.
