Review: CHOIR BOY, Stratford East

Choir Boy is about as music-driven as a play can get without becoming fully-fledged musical theatre. Following five members of a choir at an all boys boarding school, the show has gospel and a capella running through its veins – both in its subject matter and in the way the story is told.

Set over the course of one academic year, we follow the lives of Pharus, AJ, Bobby, David, and Junior, who make up their school’s prestigious choir. Tensions rise when Pharus (Terique Jarrett), who doesn’t really hide his queerness, is targeted by rich boy Bobby (Rabi Kondé), setting off a series of events that teeter on the edge of tragedy. Each beat of the story is supported by stunningly arranged gospel music, performed by a cast with quite the MT prowess.

Choir Boy is an entirely character-led show. We come to know these five boys deeply, observing their every word, breath, hum, and all of their interactions with one another. Writer Tarell Alvin McCraney builds believable, specific relationships between each of them, with the dynamic between queer Pharus and his straight roommate AJ especially compelling. Sure, there are big themes of masculinity, Blackness, queerness, and more at play, but what’s interesting is how these expansive topics are built into casual lines of dialogue and classroom chatter. McCraney gives detail to the very specific setting of the Charles R. Drew Prep School for Boys, an American, teen world far away from daily life for most London theatregoers, but anyone who’s been seventeen and at school will find something familiar. 

Such a character-driven play would be nothing without its cast, and boy do they deliver. The obvious star turn comes from Terique Jarrett as Pharus, who somersaults from riotously funny queer sass to palpable heartache with ease. There’s great comedic work from Khalid Daley as Jr, and standout dramatic moments from Freddie MacBruce as AJ. It’s also great to see Michael Ahomka-Lindsay, known for flashier work in the likes of Newsies and Legally Blonde, bring a quiet depth and intrigue to the role of David. Directors Nancy Medina and Tatenda Shamiso approache each of these characters with precision, drawing them together in a fascinating web. 

But it's the music that elevates Choir Boy from your standard coming-of-age fare. Femi Temowo’s vocal arrangements are magical, and injected with real power and panache by each of the cast. It’s near impossible to pick a standout number or singer; the quality is so consistently excellent. 

It is perhaps the energy and thrill of the musical numbers that causes the show a few problems. There’s a certain unbalance to the pacing, with some of the longer scenes feeling pedestrian until interrupted by singing or moments of melodrama. This disjointedness is accentuated by the spoken sound levels, which leave quite a few lines of dialogue lost to Stratford East’s grand auditorium. It feels like there could be a snappier, punchier version of this show that doesn’t let the momentum drop. 

And perhaps there has been. This is far from the play’s first outing. While Choir Boy premiered at London’s Royal Court over ten years ago, it had its biggest moment in 2019, when the Broadway transfer was nominated for five Tony Awards. Its writer, Tarell Alvin McCraney, is also far from an unknown – he won an Oscar for co-writing the film Moonlight. All of this to say – this is a show that is beginning to border on canonical. Its two-act structure and character-driven storytelling sees it sitting comfortably among the kinds of plays we study in school, or see revived year upon year. There’s staying power here.

Under Stratford East’s gilded proscenium arch, the play is afforded a sense of this grandeur and legacy. Production values are high - Max Johns’ set is a highly detailed school hall, with gorgeous reveals at the start of each act. It's helped by Nao Nagai’s simple but evocative lighting, which shifts from school corridors and dorm rooms to staged performances nimbly.

Having been on and off, in London, LA, and  New York, since 2012, Choir Boy clearly isn’t going away any time soon. While occasionally off-kilter, this immaculately performed powerhouse production is proof that it’s the kind of show that deserves a place among the classics. 

Choir Boy runs at Stratford East until 25 April