Tick, tick … Boom! review – a triumphant shout for theatrical ambition

Theatr Clwyd, Mold Performed and designed with gusto, Jonathan Larson’s zippy musical about creative passion is a fitting show to relaunch this cherished Welsh stageHow do you relaunch a cherished theatre? Theatr Clwyd’s bold redevelopment continues, but the main auditorium and light-filled foyers are already open (the stunning views from this theatre on a hill have never gone away). Kate Wasserberg, for her first production as artistic director, picks Jonathan Larson’s memoir musical: a show that refuses to apologise for the urgent necessity of making art. It’s New York in 1990: the city of scuzzy apartments and fragile hopes that Larson would immortalise in Rent. Jonathan is living on a hustle and a dream, desperate to compose a Broadway show. As he turns 30, his unrealised ambition is all-consuming; he’s too tangled up in frets and feelings to be properly present for his girlfriend, Susan, and best friend, Michael.Time is flying, everything is dying. A revolve neatly suggests Jonathan’s fear that he can’t set his own pace – life is going too fast, his career too slowly. This “pre-midlife crisis” could seem frivolous, but the heartbreak, the anxiety over health and money all feel real, especially in Wasserberg’s production, which is tender with the characters. Larson performed this as a solo; it was itself redeveloped after his death in 1996. His heady score is richly varied, from introspective ballad to guitar-hero antics, from zippy vaudeville to shimmering Sondheim homage. All arrive with gusto from the balcony band and tireless cast. Ryan Owen gives Jonathan restless fingers, taut smiles and a resonant sob of a voice. He bounces feelingly off Tarik Frimpong’s twisty, animated Michael and Christina Modestou’s terrific Susan, a performance of ample wit and warmth. This is also a soft launch for technical bells and whistles. Katy Morison’s lighting shifts from chill to flare (with a last neon flourish). Amy Jane Cook’s set design inserts evocative sections of rooms and roofs, and is as multitasking as the actors: a diner bar spins to become a BMW. With posters for Hair and Merrily We Roll Along on Jonathan’s wall, this show is a theatre kid’s apotheosis. It’s also a statement of intent. Making art, like opening a theatre, is a leap of faith. Theatr Clwyd lands triumphantly.At Theatr Clwyd, Mold, until 28 June Continue reading...

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