Black Dog gets glitzy makeover

To deliver a full-length musical, with 27 original songs, is an admirable achievement and Hamilton composer Chris Williams has upped the ante by crafting musical theatre out of desolation.

The story of State Highway

48 follows a bleak downward spiral as a successful salesman’s mid-life crisis is turbo-charged by redundancy, marital separation and a bout of clinical depression. The situations, skilfully dramatised with minimal dialogue, all ring true and the story movingly captures the quiet desperation behind the suburban Kiwi dream.

A five-piece band kicks the action along with a pop-rock score and musical director Mark Dennison adds delicate instrumental touches and the occasional country and western inflection that is well suited to the melancholy tone of the drama.

Director Geoff Turkington has assembled a terrific cast, who hone in on the emotional heart of songs.

Steve O’Reilly neatly captures the stoicism of a Kiwi bloke who struggles to voice his feelings while Delia Hannah’s assured vocal performance carries us through the anguish of a longsuffering wife.

Chris Tempest establishes a suave and sinister presence representing the Black Dog of depression and Jenn Shelton injects a welcome jolt of upbeat soul as a ruthlessly ambitious executive.

The most powerful emotional punch comes from 8-year-old Rupert Archer and 12-year-old Tia Ormsby, who give wonderfully natural performances that express the heart-rending confusion of children blaming themselves for their parents’ break-up.

It is heartening to see the lives of everyday New Zealanders given the glitz and glamour of a full-scale musical.