EXCERPT: "Too much of the musical we see is grounded in the actual, and though this is charming when following their relationship, I would like them to think a bit bigger too and think imaginatively how they can bring in a sense of the outside world and grander political and social implications, as well as reaching into the fantastical a bit and perhaps representing the paranoid(?) imaginings of the court."
Summary
Join us for this work in progress reading of ideas, scenes and songs for a new musical about Queen Victoria and her last great love. A most unusual love story. Just imagine, it’s the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee year, the eyes of the world are on London... and the Prince of Wales threatens to have his mother declared insane. It was a relationship that violated Victorian taboos of race and class, and threatened to destabilise the monarchy and the Empire – yet, although Queen Victoria’s earlier scandalous relationship with her Scottish ghillie John Brown is still common knowledge today, her deep affection for her Muslim servant has been almost forgotten.
Thoughts
Amy Rosenthal and Karl Lewkowicz' musical is still in a very early developmental stage, but it shows potential to be a really lovely piece. It shows the loveliness of Queen Victoria's relationship with Abdhul and there are wonderfully moving songs near the end of the first act and at the end of the whole thing that really made me well up. There's a lovely cooking song which highlights a need for there to be more fun across the piece generally. There is a fair amount that could be cut I think. Most important to keep is the poignancy of the main relationship, though their friendship could have emerged more slowly so we get more of a sense of the Queen before and after. There is also a huge amount of very fascinating historical and political wider context that I would love to be brought into the story: the Queen's attitude to India and how that changed; Abdhul's slightly dubious membership of a Muslim brotherhood society which the court regarded with suspicion; the outside world's knowledge of and reception to the Queen's unlikely friendship and the potential repercussions if the letters had been exploited. Too much of the musical we see is grounded in the actual, and though this is charming when following their relationship, I would like them to think a bit bigger too and think imaginatively how they can bring in a sense of the outside world and grander political and social implications, as well as reaching into the fantastical a bit and perhaps representing the paranoid(?) imaginings of the court. I would have also liked to know about Victoria's failings as a mother and feel a tad frustrated that it barely touched upon the quite extraordinary fact that her son tried to get her committed for madness.
To conclude: there were some lovely heartfelt moments and a couple of very touching songs. At its crux is a fascinating and heartfelt story - we just need the fascinating elements to be brought out more rigorously to give more momentum (and a sub plot) to the parts of the musical that don't centre on the pair's blossoming relationship.
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