By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN?: Sunday 30 June 2024, booking until 21 September 2024 RUNTIME: 160 minutes (including a 20-minute interval) Update: Now closing 11 August 2024

Grieving piano prodigy Kosei can no longer hear music after the death of his mentor mother until mysterious violinist Kaori arrives as the school’s new girl and turns his world upside down.

• Read on for reasons including how this has international appeal and makes for a classy addition to the West End

Your Lie In April has manga origins before becoming an anime TV show, a live action film and, finally, a musical by Frank Wildhorn (Bonnie & Clyde, Arts Theatre) in October 2019 in Tokyo, Japan.

Wildhorn is renowned for his overblown scores and April is at its best when Kaori, a fearless West End debut by Mia Kobayashi is giving it her full-throated all.

First we meet Kosei, played by Zheng Xi Yong, and begin to understand why he became known as ‘the human metronome’ because his late mother instilled a discipline in him to stick rigidly to his sheet music.

Director Nick Winston gives us a stage with a revolving piano and decorated with cherry blossom and it’s the early songs If I Can’t Hear The Music and This Is Our Time, where we meet Kosei’s best friends, which are the most memorable.

Rachel Clare Chan is strong as best friend forever Tsubaki who is secretly crushing on Kosei and Dean John Wilson (Aladdin, Prince Edward Theatre) is memorable as sporty Watari who Kaori initially pretends to be sweet on to gain access to the tight friendship group.

Kaori challenges Kosei to enter the music competitions he has previously won but can no longer face and song One Note reminds of the ‘one shot’ ethos of a musical like Hamilton as Kaori’s seize the day mentality starts to rub off on the former piano prodigy.

Towards the show’s close things become a little too mawkish and melancholic and the instrumentals at the piano felt overlong and unengaging.

But there’s clearly a market for this show which has international appeal and it makes for a classy addition to the West End at a venue which is more renowned for its plays than its musicals.

• Main picture via Facebook courtesy ATG Tickets
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