Karate Kid the Musical - The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham

I'm not much of a person for musicals. I saw that one with the roller skates as a child, but nothing else until recently. It's frankly bizarre to watch people spontaneously bursting out into song (same goes for Disney). I'm not much of a theatre goer in general. It's not that I don't like theatre - there is something to be said for live performance - but, rather, I don't know what to see. With film, having studied film studies at college, I know what actors, writers, directors, production companies would steer me most reliably to a good production. With theatre, I'm not so confident at choosing, and there is nothing more deflating than sitting through a bad play. That's why, if I do go, I choose established properties that I know I already love. Hence, the last musical I saw was Back to the Future. (Yes, I'm a child of the eighties and proud of it.) These two franchises I will watch whenever they are on TV. I never grow tired of them, and that's all installments. ('You're watching that again?')

Having been blown away by the adaptation of the Zemeckis classic, I entered The Alexandra Theatre, in Birmingham, last night with trepid optimism for this eighties adaptation. I have never been to The Alexandra before, but arrived early and spent some time in the plush bar area (not enough seats, however). There were plenty of people proudly sporting Cobra Kai t-shirts, not something you would have seen in the eighties, but thanks to the revisionist TV series of the same name, that has turned around. (The middle seasons were a bit weak, but, yes, I really enjoyed that, too.) There were even a few people wearing Hachimaki, which shows commitment. It seemed there were more visitors, that bit older, who enjoyed their late childhood/ early teens around the time of the original movie's release, and were unashamedly living out their youth. Who am I to judge, so long as they're having fun? I'm reaching that age where I'm forgoing the terminally cool lately and just enjoying what I enjoy. Maybe that's a sign of maturity. (Yes, I saw Def Leppard live recently. Yes, I loved them as a teenager. Yes it was epic.)

I knew of none of the cast beforehand, although I'd watched a podcast with newcomer Gino Ochello, who plays Daniel LaRusso, and Adrian Pang, who plays Mr Miyagi, beforehand. The pair seemed well cast and were effusive about the story and production in general. I'd read mixed reviews, but I reserved judgement until I'd made up my own mind. Optimistically, I bought a programme in the hope that I was going to enjoy it. Fortunately, I was not disappointed. The show is brilliant, and I had a fantastic time! It opened on an empty stage with a large bonsai tree in the centre, casting a large shadow on the paper screen backdrop. Adrian Pang/ Mr Miyagi steps out onto the boards, a commanding presence. He trims his tree and reflects on the time he met Danielsan. Then we are back in familiar territory, albeit somewhat different, as the opening number 'Rewrite my Story' indicates. We all know the narrative, bereaved Daniel and his mother up ship from New Jersey to move to sunny California so that his mother can build them a new life. Admittedly, I'm not American, but the stagey American accents from both Sharon Sexton (Irish) who played Lucille LaRusso and Gino (Gibraltarian) were both convincing and not jarring at all, as all were. The chemistry between them was natural and they were clearly at ease with each other. The acting in general was great: Daniel played with even more dorkiness than Ralph Macchio's original (the bow!). I cringed a little during some of the songs, as they were a little cheesy, especially Daniel's, but they were not too off-putting, and relaxed into it more when the singing was over. You certainly couldn't criticise any of the cast's vocal chops. Each received a massive round of applause from the audience after their numbers (the crowd, much like the Back to the Future audience just after lockdown, were there to enjoy themselves and were generous with their appreciation).

It was the scenes where Daniel and Miyagi were on the stage that it really came alive. All the familiar beats in the dialogue were there but, as you can imagine from writer of the original movies - Robert Mark Kamen, was somewhat different, whilst retaining the authenticity of the characters. Whenever Adrian Pang was on the stage was a joy. He would have made Pat Morita proud. How the fly scene was tackled has to be seen. The first half whizzes through the set changes at a pace, with seamless transitions; it clearly was very well rehearsed. All of the scenes you know and love are in there in one variation or other, given the limitations of the stage: Daniel meets Ali, played more than capably by, also a newcomer, the alluring Abigail Amin (I heard some people commenting on her hair colour, but that's just nit picking); Daniel gets beat up by Cobra Kai (the motorbikes evoked); Mr Miyagi fixes Daniel's bike and so on, I don't need to tell you. Some interesting new inclusions include a chorus of dancers, representing the spirit of martial arts, that shadow Mr Miyagi's movements, played by a group of accomplished dancers; and a new nerdy friend of Daniel's who first warns Daniel off Ali, who fits well into the story (played by Finley Oliver). There's a knowing reveal of Daniel's costume for the dance which received cheers - a touch of dramatic irony. I'm smiling as I write about it. The first half ended on a high note and I left the theatre thinking it was a bit cheesy but a lot of fun.

I forewent an interval drink (the prices were dearer than a nightclub) and resumed my seat shortly after a comfort break. A note to be aware of: I bought a cheap ticket in the stalls that was off to one side, and I had an obstructed view of the right side of the stage (so something to bear in mind). Fortunately, my entire row was empty, so I scooted down to the aisle seat at the opposite end and had a fantastic view. As some reviews will tell you, the shorter second half is better than the first. It opens with a birthday party at Ali Mill's house, during which her character is given much more depth, as the class divide between them is made even more explicit. This is something to be celebrated throughout the performance, how much more insight we are given into the characters, as their back stories are much more substantial. The real emotional weight of the story comes in this half from both Pang and Sexton. Firstly, in Mr Miyagi's iconic drunken scene - which almost never made the final cut of the movie - that Pang delivers with just as much reverence and emotional resonance as Morita's original. The scene is improved by the inclusion of the spirit of Miyoko, his dead wife, played beautifully by Ria Tanaka. The theatre was silent throughout. This was followed by Sexton's even more moving scene, as if it could not get any more so, as Mrs LaRusso deals with the grief at losing her partner and Daniel's father, and slowly lets go of her overprotectiveness over Daniel. Lucille's backstory is also much richer than the original movie. Where I recoiled a little at some of the songs in the first half, both Pang and Sexton's emoting had me genuinely moved. They were credible songs. Its this live emotional connection where the theatre can't be beaten. I'm sure I could hear someone sniffling from further over in the stalls.

Also to be applauded were the way the training montages were translated spatially on stage. (Yes, the lake scene is in there. Yes, there is a boat.) I was intrigued how they were going to create the tension of the final fight without editing and close ups. I won't give too much away, but the way time is dilated and Daniel summons up his strength is fantastically handled. The final fight scenes were met with whoops and jeers from the audience. It ends with Danielsan having his vision.

None of the original music was in the play (for copyright reasons), but the impact wasn't any the lesser for it. It's at which point I have to mention John Kreese and Johnny Lawrence. For the performance I saw, the former was played capably by one of Mat Mill's understudies (from the picture in the programme, I imagine that Mills would have been more physically imposing). Joe Simmon's Johnny was equally the match of William Zabka's original performance. The whole cast and crew should be commended and were met with rousing standing ovations at the curtain call (Pang seemed overwhelmed with emotion). I was bathed with a warm glow that was more than just nostalgia. It's a smaller show than Back to the Future and doesn't have the same technical wizardry, neither does it need it, but I enjoyed the show none of the lesser. Having seen the cast and crew's credentials I shouldn't have been surprised it was a success. This is undoubted excellence. It's certainly a performance I wished I had my own family to bring to. Go and see it!