Set in the confines of a train carriage, Leaves on the Line introduces a fresh, vibrant style of songwriting. Witty, self-aware and emotional musical numbers are executed with utter professionalism and heart by the team from DULOG, Durham University’s largest musical theatre company.
Evie and Constance, the co-composers and lyricists of Leaves, describe the musical that emerged from pandemic-induced Zoom writing sessions as spotlighting a subject far from the isolation experienced over months – ‘life in all its bustling, chaotic, and at times, highly irritating glory.’ In many ways, they say, ‘the show is a tribute to normality’.
In the show’s two-year journey, with a creative team and cast hopping onboard, a workshop, and an upcoming run at the Durham Fringe, it has developed into something special to everyone involved, intensely charged with stories, humour and heart.
Anticipate “a production of both heart-felt emotion and belly-aching laughter”, says director Alexandra Hart. As the chaos of a single train carriage unfolds into stories, viewers will laugh and feel with the motley assortment of train passengers – a weary office-worker on her commute back to Peterborough, a struggling actor visiting her more successful friend at the Fringe, and a teenager who won’t tell anyone where he’s going or why.
With unexpected delays and personal struggles, irritating announcements and embarrassing moments, Leaves on the Line is a new musical that tells the stories of ordinary people’s extraordinary lives with warmth and wit.
