Review by Carly Fisher
Born out of a passion project during the lockdown period, Shantify! is the mid-afternoon fringe treat that you may not have known you wanted, but you absolutely needed. From wo-to-go, I, along with all other audience members in my immediate peripheral, sat with Cheshire Cat-like wide smiles as we indulged in this hour of pure musical joy.
When Dolly Parton’s 9 to 5 is shantified within the first few minutes of the song, you quickly find yourself answering the question that seems plastered on this show’s social media - can every song be shantified? In the hands of this supremely talented team, it would appear, yes.
Captained by Harry Style and Ashley Jacobs as the show’s musical directors, the arrangements of each song are what gives this show a real edge. Taking songs that we love from musicals like Hamilton, Six, Beyonce, Dolly Parton, and so many more, and giving them this unique flair, is exciting to hear when it is done with such aplomb.
It is even more exciting when you are treated to the smooth tones of six of the most talented singers I got to witness this fringe. All 6 are highly accomplished performers and it is great to see them at the fringe! Aidan Banyard, Andy Gallo, Will Jennings, Michael Riseley, Tom Miles and Jospeh Peters make for a formidable team, knowing just when to take the lead and most importantly, when to support the group. The harmonies are at moments goosebump worthy and the strength in these deep voices is a true pleasure to listen to.
Jo Parsons and Chris Hall as director and choreographer respectively, have put together some great moments that use the small stage that they have well. Undoubtably, the height of this achievement is demonstrated through the Sweeney Todd number - loved what you did there!
Hopefully future productions are in a far more conducive space to a show like this and will accordingly allow for more.
It is worth noting that whilst Assembly’s Bijou spiegeltent is a very pretty venue, it unfortunately has some of the worst site lines (and sound proofing) of all the fringe venues here in Edinburgh. With this in mind, this felt to me to be the wrong venue choice for this show which is so enhanced by seeing the ‘full image’ of the sextet together. Assembly has stages that would be far better suited to a show like this and I very much hope that to see this show on one of them next year. I say next year because there is no doubt that a show like this could become a fringe favourite - that show that you make sure to see every year - especially if the songs are changed up year to year. It’s a great formula for a show!
The only advantage of the bad sound proofing is that, in the performance I was in for, an unfortunate sound bleed to one of the purest displays of talent on the stage and it was a privilege to witness it. As the show hit its heartfelt climax, a beautiful a cappella rendition of ‘Climb Every Mountain,’ there was a lively street performance (think Mariachi Band) that bled through the walls. With Gallo and Miles trying their best to pitch with this hilariously contrasting music in the background, the two men erupted into laughter - a beautiful authentic moment that had the audience in hysterics with them. It’s moments like this where you get to see just how good the performers before you are because after the laughs, they gathered themselves, and pushed through to pitch through this crazy background noise and the result was sublime.
This is the beauty of live theatre. This is why being in the room is so special - to have that shared experience and to watch the performers triumph - I loved it! One of my favourite moments of the show for sure!!
But that is in amongst a range of favourite moments - namely the musical theatre medley.
All in all, there’s nothing not to like about this show and I would recommend it to everyone.
This show will do well wherever it goes - it has a Choir of Man quality to it that almost guarantees it will shoot to stardom if this group chases it, and I hope that they do.
Image Supplied
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