“White Rose” tells the story of the eponymous resistance movement against Hitler’s leadership. Sophie Scholl arrives in Munich in 1942, full of hopes and dreams. She joins her brother Hans at the local university where she meets his friends Christopher Probst and Willi Graff and their professor Kurt Huber. Soon enough Sophie comes to terms with the brutality of the Gestapo and Hitler’s dictatorship. She can’t stay silent and fall in line. When she learns that Hans and his schoolmates have started writing revolutionary leaflets, calling out Hitler’s lies, she finally finds her calling: leading the movement out of the shadows and into Munich streets.
Natalie Brice’s score (lyrics by Brian Belding) is a powerful combination of fiery rock anthems and soulful ballads, belted out by the excellent voices of the cast. The songs are the strongest element of this musical that echoes famous predecessors like “Spring Awakening”. It supports vigorously Belding’s book, which has the very challenging task to deliver sufficient historical context whilst charting the inner emotional journey of the characters. It isn’t always successful in doing so: in the spirit of Greek tragedy, most of the traumatic events unfold off stage, so the dialogues at times have to fill in the historical blanks rather than focus on the nuances of its characters. It is arguably a difficult subject to transpose for the stage, given the intellectual onset of this revolutionary movement and the magnitude of the war happening all around them. All the same, there are several well-delivered emotional moments, and throughout the show we come to care a lot about the movement and its members. The ending is excellent.
Though lacking a bit of vulnerability, Sophie (Collette Guitart) stands out as the strong-willed leader who risks her life for truth and freedom. In this interpretation, she is the star of the “White Rose”. Her big brother Hans (Tobias Turley), though equally invested in the cause, seems also concerned about keeping her sister safe. In fairness, he’s the one who witnessed the brutality of the war firsthand as well as Hitler's training camp for young Germans so I can’t blame his attitude. His solo “The sheep chose a wolf” is one of the most impactful moments of the show. The rest of the cast gives solid performances.
The direction by Will Nunziata and the set by Justin Williams are quite essential and stripped back: the stage is mostly empty; there’s an elevated platform where the Gestapo can look down on its prey at any given moment, dramatically lit by Alex Musgrave. Overall, it’s an effective staging for this story. Personally, I would have liked to see the headquarters of the White Rose filling the bare space more and more, as the movement evolves, to make the ideas and the inspiration behind the leaflets more tangible and visually striking.
“How can we expect righteousness to prevail when there is hardly anyone willing to give himself up individually to a righteous cause”. It's more than a topical story for our times. It’s a rebellious call to action. I hope this show keeps growing and spreading its brave message far and wide.
White Rose the musical is at Marylebone Theatre until 13th April.
Review: Francesco Pagnoncelli Photos: Marc Brenner