Skip to main content

Frozen Love review

Frozen Love: A Buckingham Nicks Story follows the relationship of Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks, reaching its climax with the pair being asked to join Fleetwood Mac. Created by and staring Georgie Banks and Jake Byrom, Frozen Love features the music of Buckingham and Nicks (performed live), and is currently playing at The Space at Surgeons' Hall.

First things first, someone needs to tell the Space to sort out their air conditioning situation. I do not feel that the conditions (absolutely boiling) were acceptable for the audience, let alone hard-working performers. If the first thing your theatre goers are saying while leaving is not “wow what a great show” but rather “oh my gosh so hot in there” you are doing the show and its attendees a disservice.

That aside, I found Frozen love totally immersive, and in many ways a joy to watch. The charming performances of Georgie Banks and Jake Byrom, American accents included, are very strong. The modest set elements do more than enough to covey the era and location. 

The cast can really sing. It is a relative rarity for an Edinburgh Fringe show to have live music, and the quality of the musical performance is to a very high standard. Banks nails the harmonies, and Byrom is a solid vocalist and guitarist. He even delivers a monologue while playing - no easy feat. Rather impressive too, is how they are choosing to promote the show - with the company belting out tunes just outside of Surgeon’s Hall, even in the Edinburgh drizzle. Frozen Love is a brilliant showcase of the talent and dedication of its two performers. 

A downside of Frozen Love is there is little light-side to the relationship in this depiction. There is minimal romantic chemistry between the couple, and much of the time is devoted to arguments instead. Although the acting during the emotional scenes is very good, the impact is not as it could be without anything to stand in opposition to. This is very much a depiction of the Buckingham/Nicks relationship that leans into the problematic, or even at times coercive side. 

One of the most striking scenes of the show comes just after the album cover shoot, where Nicks is forced to pose nude. With the stage to herself, she grasps a guitar, turns on a heavy fuzz effect, and performs with a real dominance. This shows Nicks as independent and in control, indicative of her strength of character as seen throughout her career. This is where Frozen Love is at its best, allowing the songs to take on renewed emotional purpose through the performance. 

I am perhaps not the target audience for Frozen Love. I can imagine the show resonating a little more with those that have a greater familiarity with the story and songs. I must admit, I am one of the vile creatures with a penchant for the Peter Green era of Fleetwood Mac. It is also worth noting that it is not long since I saw the play Stereophonic, a production heavily inspired by the story of Fleetwood Mac. There being overlap between these two shows, I think my enthusiasm for Frozen Love was slightly tempered. 

Banks and Byrom have created a great show, but Frozen Love could do with more time to better explore the highs and lows of the Buckingham/Nicks relationship. It is a shame the production feels a little constrained by the one-hour Edinburgh Fringe format in this regard. That being said, this is a well-polished production, that stands head and shoulders above the quality of a great many Fringe shows. If you are a fan of Fleetwood Mac, or are looking for a show with some great live music, Frozen Love is for you. ★★★☆☆


Thank you to the company of Frozen Love for inviting me. Tickets were provided free of charge and I was given full control over the content of the review.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Not Your Life review

Not Your Life follows Jacob (Yalim Danisman), who returns from war to find that his best-friend (Rian Cash) and his best-friends' wife (Lucy Clifton) have made a life for themselves in the house Jacob used to call home. What entails is an exploration of the jealousies and fractures within the trio, as they bubble to the surface after years of repression.  A story conceived by Yalim Danisman (writer and performer) and Ege Kucucuk (director), Not Your Life is performed at the Etcetera Theatre, a small but formidable pub theatre. The Etcetera is a successful catalyst for developing talent. Spaces like this are increasingly rare (the loss of Vault Festival, for example, still casts a shadow) and it is great to see venues providing a platform for up-and-coming talent. Not Your Life is an intimate and varied portrait of relationships, be it as friends, enemies or lovers. All the unfolding drama is against the backdrop of the residual trauma of warfare and childhood. Not Your Life also se...
Post a Comment
Read more

Giant review

Mark Rosenblatt's Giant is a meticulously devised, and thought provoking play. It follows Roald Dahl - with his publishing team in crisis - as they grapple with the implications of an anti-semitic article he wrote just prior to the release of The Witches. The article in question pertains to Dahl's views on Israel (and its people), which becomes a source of anger for both the general public, and those closest to him. It is in my view, an incredibly intelligent decision to parallel a messy, raw, interpersonal conflict of the past, with a current-day (or rather ongoing) geopolitical one. Rosenblatt manages to convey much of the complexity of the "Israel-Palestine debate" within a slice of life show.   Rosenblatt has managed to craft such a layered depiction of Dahl, even within such a short snapshot of his life. T he formidable John Lithgow brings this vision  to life with his characterisation of Dahl, oscillating between the childlike, the resentful, the passionate, the...
Post a Comment
Read more

Tuck! review

An abstracted amalgam of comedy, sex and biological disgust, Tuck! (directed by Lou Bristow-Bell) describes itself as a "boun dary-pushing psycho-dream" play. An apt epithet. On this occasion, Tuck!  takes residence in the Baron's Court Theatre, nestling itself under the black painted brick arches of the pub cellar venue - a suitably unsettling setting.  The cast of Tuck! is exemplary. Of particular note are Jack Heffran and Samantha Begeman, who manage to effortlessly recreate the awkward flirting of a couple - in this scene the dialogue shines too. The comic timing and ability to enthral an audience that the entire cast possesses has to be commended.  The play's disturbing moments include: the description of a group ritualistically sucking the blood out of a used tampon, a woman achieving orgasm through being told by how petite she is, and the question "are you wet?" answered not with words - but by reaching between their legs and discovering copious amo...
Post a Comment
Read more