What do you do when you need a nostalgic 90s kick? You could always listen to some of the songs you enjoyed from that period…or you can throw caution to the wind and go for something more sinister, something darker. Something a bit more…cruel.
Cruel Intentions tells the story of step-siblings Christian and Kathryn who spend their days making a name for themselves and messing with everyone else’s lives. With Christian looking to get back at therapist Mrs Caldwell and the arrival of devout abstinent student Annette, the siblings make a pact for Christian to try and seduce Annette into bed, and break her beliefs. But as the two form an unlikely friendship, Christian’s attitudes are fundamentally shaken, as his sister breathes down his neck to get the deal done.
I have never seen the film that this musical was based on. But if it’s anything like its stage adaptation, I’m sad to be quite content to have not seen it. There were standout elements of this production for sure, the lighting design for one was very imaginative, even if it did feel very similar to Sunset Boulevard at times. The choreography was mostly fun, but I enjoyed it most for the closing number than for the show itself. And then there’s the plot. The musical was, of course, constrained by the subject matter it was working off of, but the plot felt very slow-moving, with nothing particularly exciting happening…until the final scene or two where so much happens in ten minutes it feels rushed. After such a long build-up, the ending felt very sudden and I don’t think it fits the rest of the story. The musical wasn’t bad per se, but it absolutely wasn’t anything special from where I was sitting, with the soundtrack just being filled with covers of famous pop songs, rather than reimagining them as other successful jukebox musicals do so well.
The cast overall performed their roles quite convincingly, but I was more enamoured by some of the supporting cast than the main characters themselves, who were good but not outstanding in my opinion. Rose Galbraith as Cecile Caldwell was by far my favourite performance of the evening, giving a genuine but sweet naivety that you couldn’t help but empathise with. Her skills as an actress are one of the shining beacons within this production, and her understanding of character and role make her feel like a genuine person caught up in this trouble. Also giving a hilarious performance was Josh Barnett as Blaine Tuttle who was simply queer, fabulous and entertaining whenever they were on stage. Barnett gives this musical the comedic reprieve it needs!
Sadly, Cruel Intentions was not the shining musical I had hoped for when I first saw it advertised. It certainly had fantastic elements within it, but the overall lack of a cohesive storyline and unimaginative soundtrack let the production down on arguably the two most important elements in a musical adaptation. The show has potential, but in its current form left a lot to be desired
Rating: ★★☆☆☆
Cruel Intentions is playing at The Other Palace until May 19th
