Birmingham... are you ready to rock?
SMASH HIT MOVIE SCHOOL OF ROCK IS BEING PLAYED OUT ON STAGE
You have to put a little bit of him in there, otherwise I think people might be disappointed, but there’s never a conscious effort on my part to imitate him.
THEY say never work with children or animals, but the adult cast and creatives of School of Rock are thrilled to be sharing the stage with so many talented youngsters.
“They are so inspiring to a new generation,” raves Jake Sharp, who stars as renegade music teacher Dewey Finn in the first ever UK and Ireland touring production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s smash hit musical.
“Lots of them have previously come to see the show and now they’re in it. The energy that they bring, the natural energy that young people have, is amazing and it’s a complete pleasure being on stage with them. It keeps the show real and raw all the time.”
Having previously played Dewey in the West End, the actor also feels School of Rock is the perfect show for right now. “It’s completely joyous,” he says. “It’s inclusive, positive and optimistic, which is what we all need after everything we’ve been through recently.”
Associate director Chris Keys, who has been with the show since it opened in London in 2016, couldn’t agree more, saying: “There’s such a feel-good factor to it.
‘‘With theatres having been closed for so long, it’s great escapism. It’s fun, it’s funny and it really demonstrates the sheer power of music, for the characters in the show and for giving audiences such an entertaining evening out.”
Based on the 2003 film starring Jack Black, the Olivier Award-winning musical follows wannabe rockstar Dewey as he poses as a substitute teacher at the prestigious Horace Green School and transforms a diverse bunch of students into a brilliant rock band - with three musical numbers from the film featured alongside 14 original Lloyd Webber compositions.
With a book by Julian Fellowes, the stage version is very true to the movie, Chris notes.
“It’s got the same high-energy spirit and fans will recognise a lot of the lines and plot points. But we go more in-depth into the backstories of the children. You see why they need Dewey Finn in their lives and how it changes them as much as it changes him.”
Lloyd Webber’s wife, Madeleine, first discovered the School of Rock film when the couple’s three thenyoung children showed it to her in 2006. She fell in love with what she saw as “a charming, funny, irreverent” story about music empowering kids and adults and convinced Andrew that they should buy the rights to it.
Madeleine wrote to the studio, Paramount Pictures, and they turned her down. But she persisted and six years later got the go-ahead, with Lloyd Webber settling on Fellowes (of Gosford Park and Downton Abbey fame) to write the book.
The musical had its world premiere at the Winter Garden Theatre, New York, in 2015 and was an instant hit, returning the composer to the rock roots of his 1970 smash Jesus Christ Superstar. And like the first Andrew Lloyd Webber / Tim Rice collaboration Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat in 1968 it showcases young performers, 42 of them in fact.
The cast features 19 adults, including four principals, and 12 youngsters rocking out at each performance – with the latter rotating across the tour and standbys always waiting in the wings, hence those 42 children on the roster. And the young rockers play all their own instruments completely live.
Having joined School of Rock in 2018 as a cover for the leading actor, Jake Sharp went on to alternate the role in the West End and now he’s headlining the tour.
The actor, whose theatre credits include Mamma Mia! and Sleep
less, is thrilled to be revisiting the character of Dewey, saying: “He’s so playful, so childlike and so driven. Playing him is incredibly freeing. Because of the benchmark that Jack Black set, whatever you do – no matter how silly it is – still fits in with the character.”
Jake isn’t worried about being in Jack’s shadow. “Obviously he was incredible in it but I haven’t rewatched the film since getting the job. You have to put a little bit of him in there, otherwise I think people might be disappointed, but there’s never a conscious effort on my part to imitate him. And if people think I’m anything like him that’s the biggest compliment ever.”
Neither is Rebecca Lock, who plays school principal Rosalie Mullins, daunted about following in the footsteps of comedy legend Joan Cusack.
“Joan was really kooky whereas my Rosalie is a bit more of a sergeant major,” she laughs. “But as a lover of the film and her in it, of course I’m going to steal all of Joan’s best bits!”
School of Rock the Musical is at Birmingham’s Alexandra Theatre from January 31 to February 5.