Perhaps one for the older teens, From Here to Eternity is the latest stage musical from lyric-writing legend Tim Rice. Known for other shows such as Aida, The Lion King, and Jesus Christ Superstar, the man has excelled again with the lyrics for this show. It’s a moving piece about the lives of American soldiers on the coast of Hawaii during World War II in the final days leading up to the attack on Pearl Harbour, and based on the 1951 book of the same name. The show was first considered as an idea in 2011, just after the complete version of the book was released, since it had previously been censored by publishers.
The story follows the paths of several soldiers in G Company. It begins when Private Robert E. Lee Prewitt joins the military company after moving from Kentucky and is asked to box for the company’s team. He refuses, confusing his fellow soldiers since he apparently has a good background in the sport, yet when pestered by his friend Maggio, who also doesn’t play by the rules, we find that his refusal to fight may in fact hold the key to a dark secret in Robert’s past. Soon Robert falls in love with Lorene, an exotic dancer. Alongside this, First Sergeant Milt Warden meets the Captain’s Wife, and falls in love with her, leading to a passionate affair. How will the relationships fare though when the men are constantly on the ready to leave and fight in the war?
This story does a couple of very good things. Firstly, it shows us that for the soldiers in companies like this one, left to basically keep watch, the war was in fact not really a physical trial on the body, but actually a mental trial for the mind, since they had very little to do, and they were forced to be away from not only those they loved, but pretty much any female company. Secondly, and in my opinion most importantly, it reminds us that each soldier that gave their lives during the war effort was an individual, each with their own story to tell, and though thousands of soldiers lost their lives during the war, each individual life had a massive impact in itself. In many ways, this is not a story about the lives of the men in G Company itself, but rather about the lives of those they left behind.
This show opened on the 30th September 2013 at the Shaftesbury Theatre in the West-End and it continued for seven and a half months before closing, which I think is a shame, since so many missed out on enjoying this spectacle. It has so many great songs that each stand out in their own right, which is rare in a stage musical, which often feature just a couple of stand-out numbers. The songs ‘Fight the Fight’ and ‘The Boys of 41’ particularly stood out to me. The choreography was also particularly impressive and the production design had a definite cohesion with the storyline and really pulled you in to the world of the characters. This was also aided by using such a distinctive musical style for the show that is so characteristic of the era and location. The performances of male leads Darius Campbell and Robert Lonsdale were also strong throughout.
Though, as mentioned above the show is no longer playing live, luckily the production was recorded for DVD, so you can buy this brilliant show to enjoy at home.
Image from: http://media.westendtheatre.com/fromheretoeternity-poster.jpg
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