It was very fitting that Delicate: Their Musical's workshop took place at the Phoenix Arts Club on the 13th of August, on the day that Taylor Swift is due to announce further details about The Life of a Showgirl, her 12th studio album. As any Taylor Swift fan will quickly note, 13 is the lucky number, and August is her month (as it's a name of a song on her album Folklore).
This independently produced show by Diarmuid McLaughlin and Victoria McLaughlin is a jukebox musical featuring the music and lyrics of Taylor Swift. Whilst Swift has written songs for the theatrical production of Cats, and there's talk of Female Rage: The Musical being trademarked by her, we are yet to see a full musical theatre production of her rich catalogue.
Enter Delicate: Their Musical, which currently stands as a one act workshop, that openly invites its audience to give feedback on the show. They were incredibly open about the fact things haven't quite been smooth sailing so far, with Diarmuid McLaughlin having to step in to play lead character Sean.
With no tech rehearsal or dress run before going out on stage, what the audience witnessed was raw. The cast may have nerves-a-plenty, but they quickly adapted to make the most of their opportunity to showcase.
The story follows heart surgeon Paige played by Ciara Power leave her manchild behind and start at a new workplace, where she meets Sean, a brain surgeon who is stuck with a dismissive and controlling wife called Ellen. When their worlds collide, there's the start of a romance, 'I Can See You', which grows in 'Electric Touch'. Paige discovers Sean is still married and things break down during 'Guilty as Sin' and 'Haunted', before they give it a go in secret 'Delicate', until Paige calls things off 'Illicit Affairs' at the end of Act One.
There's a very interesting selection of Taylor Swift songs here, notably only four of the songs chosen are singles, and many of the tracks come from Swift's third studio album Speak Now and her more sombre albums Folklore and The Tortured Poets Department. What works about the choices made are that they're great choices for storytelling and avoid the princess and fairytale tropes of her earlier catalogue. It allows Delicate to be a grown-up and adult show.
Opening with 'The Story of Us' demonstrated how well Swift's songs can be translated into a musical theatre sound, but it was later songs like 'Haunted' and 'Mirrorball' that were given more thought into how they could be adapted to work in the show.
Speaking of 'Mirrorball', the show features a drag queen character called Mirror Ball, who manages to reference The Life of a Showgirl, but unfortunately makes the show feel like it should be called 'The Death of a Showgirl', because their inclusion come and goes all too briefly, and yet they make a lasting impact to the show.
There are some funny moments dotted into the script, including the art therapy scene, and the operating theatre is a theatre scene. It's the world around the characters that breathe life into the show, and Ciara and Diarmuid do very well to create on-stage chemistry, the script works well to support their characters in building a relationship quickly.
This show is sure to change and evolve over time. As the end of Act One draws to a close it stops making full sense. Did Ellen turn up at Sean's work in the middle of the night? If it all happens in one night, why does Mirror Ball say he's seen how they act together? If they hook up at work, why does Sean tell her to stay in the room after and relax? Why on earth is Ellen as awful as she is, and why would anyone give her paperwork relating to a patient? All of these could be fixed with some simple rewrites, the plot is good, it just might need to be re-ordered when and how certain events take place.
The show could benefit with more dialogue between the characters in the poor relationships before jumping into 'The Story of Us', it would show the tension before the songs start.
I would also introduce Sean and Mirror Ball/Marcus's relationship earlier, whether that's in the hospital for an appointment to set-up the later scene, or so Mirror Ball can point out Sean should ditch Ellen and try date someone new with a rendition of 'Shake it off'. If a queer character is being set up to die, please give them more of a role. There's an unfortunate theme called 'bury your gays' or 'dead lesbian syndrome', where across media the gay or lesbian characters seem to always meet unhappy endings, and in many cases, they end up dying, our queer character ends up dead after singing one number.
But most of all, we need to have a number that brings all the characters together with a tension point to end Act One with, that will leave you hungry for Act Two, we need a bigger Act One finale, Taylor is known for her dramatic bridges, surely, they can find discover something in Swift's vast discography.
Keep an eye out for this show and its story on their Instagram @DelicateMusical.
Review: James Dix