Bare – Hill Street Theatre

The young cast really bring this musical to life. Students Peter and Jason meet and fall in love at a Catholic boarding school but golden boy Jason is determined to keep it a secret. Then he gets in with a girl with a reputation. Once again, the Catholic church comes in for a bashing, as these confused teens seek support but get none until a nun tells Peter “God does not make trash” and explains her understanding of gays by her knowledge of so many priests. The score is not that memorable, but they perform it excellently well. The backing track can be dominant, but generally solo and group pieces are strong. The best thing is the emotion each of the cast invests. Everyone convinces that they are living the jealousies and rivalries of young love for the first time, leading to the tragic conclusion.

There are several rousing group numbers with good choreography. They even sound good when deliberately singing off key before melting into perfect harmony. They have simple yet effective costume, but some fussy set changes add to the 2 hour 10 min length – that's a long time without a break which some audience members could not suffer.

Despite the grim outcome, this is a show which triumphs inclusivity, with gay lovers, the sister with weight issues, suspect religion, mother in denial. A positive production beating society negatives.

Derek Benfield