The world premiere of a new musical is always an exciting leap into the unknown, especially when it’s American writers choosing London’s West End to unveil their work. Wild About You, which has two staged concert performances this week at Theatre Royal Drury Lane, is based on Chilina Kennedy’s debut album released in 2015. Book writer Eric Holmes joined the team and the musical now comes to the stage following the release of a concept album late last year.
Wild About You is essentially a story about love, and the many forms it can take. But it’s an emotionally fraught tale that takes many unexpected paths. With some similarities to Next to Normal, Wild About You uses the music to guide the story rather than lead it.
The first act focusses on Olivia, who wakes up in hospital with a form of amnesia, and with the help of Nurse Shae (a hilarious performance from Todrick Hall) starts to remember snippets of her past by reliving them.
Spanning back to just before college we meet her high school sweetheart and later husband, Michael (Eric McCormack). But there are lovers too in Jessica (Tori Allen-Martin) and Thomas (Oliver Tompsett).
The arguably better second act puts more focus on Olivia’s son, Billy. Without giving too much away, Olivia is given the chance to see how her life choices affected Billy, and his relationship with her, from an unusual vantage point.
It’s a clever story but it often over complicates itself, and that’s not helped in the early scenes by the older actors playing the high school senior versions of themselves. We don’t know them yet, or really understand where the story is going, so the result looks a little odd. There’s some wasted opportunities too, there’s a lot made of Michael’s faith without it actually meaning anything as the story develops.
That aside, this is a story that keeps you hooked, because it really is impossible to see where it’s going. Billy, played beautifully by Jamie Muscato, has a fantastic arc that could be explored even further by introducing him earlier in proceedings.
The rock inspired score from Chilina Kennedy is impressive. The title track ‘I’m Wild About You’ is one of the best of the night, and is screaming out for a reprise. There’s a really nice mix of high energy and anthemic numbers such as ‘Bad Day Box’ alongside more tormenting ballads.
Star of Will & Grace, Eric McCormack plays Michael, and unsurprisingly leads on the marketing material. In reality, the performances that really blow the audience away come from Rachel Tucker and Jamie Muscato, while Tori Allen-Martin enthrals the audience every time she sets foot on stage.
With director Nick Winston at the helm, this concert production of a new musical is almost as fully staged as some West End favourites. Justin Williams’ set perfectly fits the action, and despite Drury Lane having a massive stage, manages to make this feel like really intimate storytelling.
This leap into the unknown is one that largely pays off, it may be early days for Wild About You, and it still needs some work, but it has a lot of potential and could easily become the next musical with a cult following.
