(London, England, U.K.)

One of my favourite movies is “The Commitments”. It came out more than 20 years ago and was based on the Roddy Doyle book of the same name. It’s about a motley crew from the wrong side of Dublin who, against all odds, became a shockingly proficient soul music band. There is no Hollywood ending to the movie but there are some truly electrifying musical performances.

As I may have mentioned in my blogs from Dublin, the final performance of “Try A Little Tenderness” has to stand as one of the most powerful musical moments ever captured on film (and record). I hesitate to say this because I may be accused of blasphemy…but it might even improve on Otis Redding’s original.  Regardless of which version you prefer, it has got to be one of the very best soul songs ever written.

Having been to musicals in both Toronto and New York City, I really wanted to see one in London’s West End. When I heard earlier this year that “The Commitments” had finally been adapted to the stage, there was no doubt that I had to see it when in London.  Among other things, I think it would have been much more difficult to reproduce the thick North Dublin accents with a North American cast.  Of course, there is also no guarantee that this musical would ever cross the ocean like the movie did.

The musical is playing at the Palace Theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue.  It’s a big old theatre with ornate decor and rather steep upper levels.  My seat was near the front of the first balcony and I had a perfect view of the entire stage.

In my opinion, the first half of the show didn’t work quite as well as the movie.  The band (deliberately) makes lots of mistakes and missteps as it struggles to become a unit:  this makes for a good movie but it didn’t come across that well in the musical format.

After the interval, however, the show redeemed itself. The second half of the show features a more polished band as well as more complete versions of songs.  When performed well, a live musical can engage all of the senses and be more effective than a movie…and for the second act, it was.

Including some songs not heard in the original film (“Papa Was A Rolling Stone” being a surprise as well as one of the strongest performances), this may have been a jukebox musical but it was highly effective.  Similar to the “concert in heaven” that ends the musical “Buddy” (about Buddy Holly), the last 4 songs are not really part of the narrative…they are just complete and furious renditions of soul classics.

The best was saved for last.  I read the previews and knew that “Try a Little Tenderness” would eventually make an appearance.  Sure enough, it was the big finale and the cast milked it for all it was worth.   In terms of impact, it was just as overwhelming as the movie version.

The final verdict?  You can’t go too far wrong with either version, especially if you are a fan of soul music.  Ideally, you’d be able to see the first half in movie form and second half live on stage…but, if you’re not in London, watching it on DVD will still give you a pretty good idea of what it’s all about.