Review: BLOOD BROTHERS, Theatre Royal Brighton

Three years ago, I sat in this same auditorium reviewing Blood Brothers for this website, and I wondered then what gives this show its extraordinary staying power. Returning now to see the very same production - with the same creative team and even some returning cast members - the answer is clear. In a world where social mobility remains fraught and divisions persist on a global level, the story feels anything but dated.

The central performances remain its beating heart. The two actors reprising the roles of Mickey (Sean Jones) and Eddie (Joe Sleight) deliver work that is every bit as compelling as it was before. Perhaps even deeper, more textured. Mickey’s volatile mix of boyish exuberance and simmering frustration feels more lived-in, while Eddie’s warmth and naivety make the tragic circumstances to which they are destined, all the more painful.

Production-wise, very little has changed. But then, it didn’t need to. The staging remains clean and purposeful, allowing Willy Russell’s story of superstition, social mobility, and class division in the 1960s and beyond to take centre stage. The spare, unfussy design still frames the action effectively, proving that spectacle is secondary to storytelling here.

The Narrator continues to loom over proceedings with a suitably ominous presence, the embodiment of fate and folklore. In a musical so steeped in superstition that shadowy watchfulness is essential. It’s a reminder that in Blood Brothers, destiny is never far away, and the consequences of class division are inescapable.

More than anything, this return visit confirms what has long been true: Blood Brothers is a classic that endures. Its exploration of class inequality, opportunity, and the myths we cling to still resonates powerfully decades after its debut. Looking around the auditorium, the appeal spans generations - notably a large class of secondary school children who (this author has on good authority) are studying it for their GCSE exams. What a joy it must be for Willy Russell to be able to touch such a diverse blend of people with his writing.

If this production continues to be performed with such care and commitment, there is no reason it won’t keep selling out and moving audiences for decades to come.

Blood Brothers is running at Theatre Royal Brighton until Saturday 14 February, then continues on tour.

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