ajhlovestheatre

THE MAD ONES

by Kait Kerrigan and Bree Lowdermilk

directed by Emily Susanne Lloyd

The Other Palace Studio, London – until 1 June 2025

running time: 2 hours including interval 

https://theotherpalace.co.uk/the-mad-ones/

American teenager Samantha Brown is haunted. A super-bright young woman with an unconventional but strangely admirable mom, she lost her best friend Kelly in a car accident and that colours the way she views the world. Kelly is everywhere for Samantha: a cajoling, supporting, sometimes mocking, occasionally furious, presence. That’s the basic premise for Kat Kerrigan and Bree Lowdermilk’s emotionally rich, deceptively sophisticated chamber musical and if on paper it might appear mawkish and a little clichéd, in practice and on stage it proves anything but.

Originally seen off-Broadway in 2017, The Mad Ones examines grief and the bonds that transcend mere mortality, while also addressing the growing pains every young person has to deal with, and the sexual ambiguity in a relationship between two women who love each other unconditionally. It’s funny and heartfelt, but the overall tone is one of regret and wonder, but with the freshness and energy of youth.

The transitions from script to musical numbers are almost seamless, and when the characters sing with full chest, as they often do, it’s because they’re in that musical theatre nirvana where emotions can only be expressed in song because the spoken word no longer suffices. There’s a lot of gorgeous multiple harmony belting going on here but, unlike with numerous contemporary musicals (including The Great Gatsby, the Broadway juggernaut now at the Coliseum and with which Kerrigan is also creatively involved), this feels entirely organic and true to the story being told rather than just bravura vocals for their own sake. 

The storytelling is non-linear and sometimes a little ponderous. Samantha (Dora Gee, winningly sincere and vocally impressive) appraises her young life story in retrospect as her memories get swirled up and randomly dissipated which can get a bit hard to follow on first viewing. Gee is so lovable you’ll want to stick with her as Samantha tries to sort out whether to explore her academic possibilities (she’s got an offer at prestigious Yale University) or set off on the track of adventurous self discovery, as prescribed by Courtney Stapleton’s sensationally sung, hard-to-resist Kelly. Even if the narrative is sometimes confusing, it’s impossible not to care about these vibrant young women.

Another marvellous creation is Beverly, Samantha’s uber-feminist, neurotic mom, played with a delightful mixture of eccentricity and authority by Thea-Jo Wolfe. She gets possibly the best number, a stunning second act solo ‘Miles And Miles’ about the differences in the futures mapped out for women versus men (“the glass cracks in the ceiling and women swell with pride / but when a woman breaks the rules / the world’s not on her side / The wheels of change / they move so goddamn slow”). It takes the breath away with its clarity of intent and musical sophistication, and it’s delivered thrillingly but with rock solid truth by Wolfe. The acting throughout has that same sense of truth, these feel like real people and because of that, the show becomes increasingly more moving as it goes along.

Thematically and musically, The Mad Ones is somewhat reminiscent of Jeanine Tesori and Lisa Kron’s masterly Fun Home, which can be no bad thing. It isn’t as accomplished or ambitious but there are echos in the low-key folk/pop that periodically blossoms into something astonishing, and in the sense of memories that haunt and hurt. The romantic attraction between Samantha and Kelly is presented with genuine subtlety and sensitivity, and even if it’s never explored as fully as the tentative relationship with Gabriel Hinchcliffe’s hugely likeable garage mechanic boyfriend, it’s probably better written. 

Hinchcliffe does lovely work but it’s clear the creatives have far more interest in the women than the sole male. Kelly has a beautifully written section where she’s attempting to galvanise Samantha to run away with her from their smalltown lives, and while there’s a neat symmetry in having the boyfriend Adam repeat the same lines and lyrics later on, it sounds more hollow coming from him.

The Other Palace’s studio space hems in a show that repeatedly trumpets the necessity of freedom and Emily Susanne Lloyd’s otherwise exquisitely judged production is encumbered by having the car that is central to plot developments permanently on stage. Generally, Reuben Speed’s set, like a giant, jaggedly shattered mirror through which figures from Samantha’s memories can magically manifest then disappear, is pretty effective, especially as sensitively lit by Joanne Marshall. It’s like a visual representation of Samantha’s fractured state of mind and also the aftermath of the car accidents that punctuate the narrative.

The second act is a little over long but the quality of the score (superbly played by Callum Thompson’s mini-band on the studio’s balcony level), most of the writing and the stupendously fine cast ensure that attention doesn’t flag. The Mad Ones is a little gem, refreshing, honest and quietly devastating. Enthusiastically recommended.