Curtains – the latest production by the University of Exeter’s musical theatre society. Described in the programme as a witty whodunnit murder musical, and after watching, I can confirm that Curtains is exactly that and so much more. Footlights is a musical theatre company tied to the university who put on various shows throughout the year. Curtains is their latest performance, and the last one of the academic year.
In the beginning of the programme, the producer says how this musical was made to be “a love letter to what happens beyond the curtain – to the people who give all their time, not for the spotlight, but for the sheer joy of creating a show.” The show follows a theatre company trying to workshop their production of Robin Hood, while also being under investigation after their lead cast member dies on opening night. The show, which is said to be inspired by Cluedo, contains over-the-top characters, dramatic numbers and a myriad of jokes.
“a love letter to what happens beyond the curtain – to the people who give all their time, not for the spotlight, but for the sheer joy of creating a show.”
The most important aspect of a musical is of course the soundtrack, and Footlights nail this in every way. The music was fun and felt perfectly paced throughout the story. Some of the stand out songs included: ‘What kind of man’ which detailed how ruthless journalists can be (I hope it wasn’t directed at anyone in particular); ‘Show people’ which really highlighted the love of theatre and ‘The woman’s dead’ which had the most incredible harmonies. I also wanted to shout out the talent of the band which were hidden away back stage, yet managed to play the soundtrack without fault.
The cast themselves were all incredibly talented. While I would love to give special recognition to the members who stood out the most, I fear I would just be listing out the entire cast list. Additionally, it was incredible to see how fleshed out all the characters were. In such a short amount of time, they managed to make sure each character full and rounded, which is not easy which such a large cast. This was so well done, that even now I can’t tell you who was supposed to be the ‘main character’. The only area where difference in skill came to light was in regards to dancing. Not because anyone was bad, but there were some incredible stand out dance performances from a few members of the cast.
The cast themselves were all incredibly talented.
The story of the musical itself was a model of a classic murder mystery story. It featured all the best aspects from stories we are so familiar with, yet at no points did the show feel repetitive or old.
Finally, I wanted to celebrate the technical team behind the performance. I cannot begin to think how difficult putting on a show like this must be, and everything was handled with the utmost professionalism, even with a small technical hiccup (ceilings should really be made sturdier).
Finally, I wanted to celebrate the technical team behind the performance.
It is a shame that student theatre companies don’t get as much love as they deserve when they are able to put on such incredible shows. It is clear that so much talent and skill went into creating this production, but most importantly an abundance of love for the craft. While this year is coming to an end, I would recommend to anyone to check out what Footlights get up to next year!
