4 stars
****

Based on true events surrounding the North English village of Eyam, this powerful ensemble musical tells the story of when the bubonic plague came to the village and how they fought back at huge personal and human costs. The ‘ring of stones’ being set up to quarantine the village – “Nobody in, nobody out” until the end, literally.

Both musically and story-wise, this piece reminds me of Masada and is truly an emotional and powerfully engaging piece of theatre. The ensemble singing is excellent and it’s great to see all ages featured in a show – the mics helped a great deal although we did lose the odd un-miced lines and those of most of the children. There were also the odd pauses on stage while the cast waited for the music to finish but those were minor details.

The whole show is held together by the narration of Peter Robinson, one of the show’s creators. His storytelling is excellent and his voice strong and clear – a delight to listen to and very engaging.

All in all an impressive piece of work – I hope it comes back for a longer run in the future.

Review by Alan

theSpace @ Surgeon’s Hall
13-18 Aug
14:10-15:50