REVIEW: Blood Brothers

Blood Brothers by Nayland College, 3 April at Theatre Royal Nelson. Reviewed by Verity Davidson.

With a solid reputation of excellent productions, Nayland College’s 2025 production of ‘Blood Brothers’ does not disappoint.

‘Blood Brothers’, the musical, with book, lyrics, and music by Willy Russell, has a contemporary nature vs nurture plot, revolving around twins Mickey and Eddie, separated at birth.

One was subsequently raised in a wealthy family, the other in a poor family. The different environments take the twins to opposite ends of the social spectrum, one becoming a councillor, and the other unemployed and in prison. They both fall in love with the same woman, causing a rift in their friendship and leading to the tragic death of both brothers.

Although this is not the light-hearted bit of fun the Nayland musicals of the last couple of years have been, this gritty and tragic tale has some lovely, sweet moments.

Stand-outs for me were Mickey’s (played by Marcus Scott) delightful poem as a seven-year-old (and nearly eight!), and the children’s romp of raucous and fun-filled games, ‘Kids Game’.

But I am getting ahead of myself. From the start the scene is set with a dimly lit empty stage. The soft, sombre singing that rises slowly foreshadows a grim tale about to unfold. The narrator then confirms this in true Brechtian tradition by telling us right at the start what is going to happen, and we are immediately swept along as the story unfolds.

This is a big story spanning many years with the first half dealing with the birth of the boys and their childhood friendship (against the wishes of their mothers).

There are some really delightful moments that we can all identify with as the boys go through finding their power as children and then the angst of teenager-hood and young love.

The second half deals with the more gritty, sad unravelling of their lives leading to the untimely deaths of the brothers. A bit Shakespearean in that way really!

The rich complicated characters of the main roles were portrayed excellently by all the lead actors.

Samantha Gerritsen as Mrs Johnstone leads us through her challenging circumstances with a light hand, while also plunging us into her anguish when she loses her boy. This is a difficult role, excellently handled by Samantha. We were with her all the way and felt her pain, joy and wicked sense of humour.

Izobella Abbot as Mrs Lyons ably portrayed her character’s desperation for a child, her obvious love for Eddie and then the unravelling of her mind as she becomes obsessive and afraid of losing him.

The boys, Eddie (played by Malachi Ng) and Mickey (Marcus Scott) were perfectly matched in their yin and yang. Their instant attraction to each other’s difference was believable and endearing. Both actors had us captivated by their charm as the characters and were perfectly cast for these roles. Really well done, both.

Both Iris Moffat (as Linda) and Leo Jury (as Sammy) brought energy to the story and played their roles with focus and insight. The adept development of their characters drew us in to the tragedy and made the slow decline of the fate of Mickey and his alienation from his friend all the more poignant.

Another stand out for me was Dylan Walsh as the Narrator. He brought a gravity and sinister tone to the events on the stage, so we never forgot that this was going to end badly.

The rest of the cast were perfect in taking on many roles ably and with a lovely sense of fun or solemnity as required.

The orchestra, ably directed by Kay Mackenzie, was professional and supported the production excellently. I loved the soft moments of a single instrument that set the mood at times juxtapositioned by a full-bodied sound in the big numbers.

The set, costumes, props, lighting and sound were just as they should be – they complemented the story, the characters and the mood without detracting. Well executed with restraint.

Congratulations to the Director, Ross Gerritsen, and Music Director, Kay Mackenzie, for a captivating and very well-done production.

Blood Brothers is on at the Theatre Royal until 5 April. Get your tickets at www.theatreroyalnelson.co.nz