The Rise and Fall of Little Voice

Synopsis

Quiet, private Little Voice sings as sweetly as the divas in her father's record collection - Marilyn Monroe, Judy Garland, Shirley Bassey, Billie Holiday...Little Voice can do them all. When her mother's flash new man Ray Say hears her sing he can't believe his luck thinking that he has finally found the meal ticket he has been looking for..but will Little Voice give in to his schemes? A poignant and funny love story The Rise and Fall of Little Voice was a huge hit in the West End and on Broadway and as a movie achieved worldwide acclaim and a number of Oscar nominations.

Our Review:

Paul Lucas-Scott - 5 November 2012

One advantage when a writer directs his own play is that the subtleties, which may be almost concealed to others, come vividly to life, and this is certainly the case with Jim Cartwright’s The Fall and Rise of Little Voice. LV, as the lead character is known, is a complex person and, in this production, every facet of her is on display. Her vulnerability after losing her father, the comfort she finds in listening to his old record collection and, as the play moves on, her new-found courage and hope.

The play itself starts well before the advertised time with Duggie Brown as Mr Boo introducing some of the acts that regularly appear at his Working Men’s Club. The country’s only female George Formby impersonator and a spoon-playing/tap-dancing act start off the proceedings and certainly get the assembling crowd in the mood for a fun night. The raffle tickets, that we are all given as we enter the auditorium, add an extra dimension to ...

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Latest User Review

Paul Stedman - 8 November 2012:

Well I saw this production in a half full Congress (not Devonshire Park) theatre on the 7th November, and found it the most disappointing event that I have seen in Eastbourne for many years. Perhaps we were misled by the sales publicity, but we expected more of a musical event rather than what turned out to be a rather stilted stage play. Neither are we prudish, but the number of F....s used in the dialogue seemed both excessive and unnecessary. The play itself never really seem to get going and the only time it really came to life was when Jess Robinson as Little Voice really gave it her all in a solo performance of various numbers - although I don't recall that this lasted as long as the 15 minutes quoted in your review. The second half was better than the first (a number of the audience were seen to leave at the interval) but even this was marred by an over active dry ice/smoke machine which filled the entire auditorium with fumes to the extent that a fair number were coughing. Not the best of evenings in my book, which is a pity as the Congress and the DP have had some really excellent productions this season. Disappointed....

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