It's time for my review of The Band's Visit.Prior to The Band's Visit winning an astonishing number of 10 Tony Awards this Summer, it was a musical that I had heard very little about. As a result of the monumental amount of awards that The Band's Visit had won, I was rather interested in watching the show for myself during my trip to New York City.
The Band's Visit is about a meeting of two groups of strangers, brought together by a simple misunderstanding. Instead of ending up in the busy city of Petah Tikva in Israel, an Egyptian police band accidentally arrive in the small and isolated town of the, similarly-pronounced, Bet Hatikva where they are taken in by the locals for one night only. The storyline that The Band's Visit follows is uniquely simplistic; when breaking the story down, you can see that a minimal amount of events take place throughout the course of the play. The vast majority of modern musicals tend to have a more complex storyline, making The Band's Visit something quite special. Whilst The Band's Visit may not give you as much excitement as other musicals this season such as Mean Girls, SpongeBob SquarePants and Frozen, it is still a fascinating show to witness. I personally found it intriguing to watch the lives of those who live in the forgotten town of Bet Hativka, and how each and every one of them reacted differently to the Egyptian police band that suddenly appear on their doorsteps.
The storyline and book of The Band's Visit is well-accompanied by the Tony Award winning score, written by David Yazbek. I am familiar with Yazbek's previous work as a result of having seen the recent West End production of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. Having said that, this score is different from both Yazbek's previous work and anything else that you can currently find on Broadway. The Middle Eastern influence within the music is rather unusual, and it is enjoyable to hear a score as new and fresh as this one is. My personal favourites from this charming score are 'Welcome to Nowhere' 'Omar Sharif', 'Haled's Song About Love' and 'Answer Me', with the latter being my overall highlight of the entirety of the show.
The cast of The Band's Visit are all exceedingly talented, but there are three particular cast members who I personally felt stole the show. In the leading role of Dina, Katrina Lenk gives an enchanting performance. Whenever Lenk entered the stage, all of my attention and focus was centred on her. She has a clear command of the stage throughout the play, and holds the audience's attention right up until the very end. Additionally, Lenk is also clearly a rather talented singer, delivering all of her musical numbers faultlessly. Ari'el Stachel, in the role of Haled, was yet another stand out cast member, providing a charming performance. Stachel truly comes into his element during the number 'Haled's Song About Love', which is a particular high point of the show. Finally, my other special mention in regards to the cast would go to Adam Kantor, who plays the character simply known as the 'Telephone Guy'. Kantor has limited stage time, as well as limited dialogue, but he has created a clear and intriguing characterisation. Additionally, his rendition of 'Answer Me' was truly something special.
On the creative side of The Band's Visit, both the lighting and sound designs are superlative. Tyler Micoleau's lighting design is highly effective throughout the show, particularly when creating the effect of the town of Bet Hatikva during the evening. Kai Harada's sound design is also excellent, with every instrument, sound effect and word sounding utterly crystal clear.
The featured star of The Band's Visit is, drum roll please... KATRINA LENK!
Katrina Lenk steals the show from beginning to end. Her performance as Dina is very engaging and she had the audience eating out of her palm right up until curtain call. Katrina Lenk is perfection in the role of Dina; she is not a force to be reckoned with.
Now for my final verdict on The Band's Visit. I give The Band's Visit...
Originally, I was having difficulty deciding as to whether The Band's Visit should be awarded three or four stars. However, after looking back at the play and admiring its originality, I decided that it is worthy of a four star rating.
Think it should have got a higher rating? Agree with my rating? Think it should have got a lower rating? If so comment below.
Thanks for reading!
-The Reviewer
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