Fringe musicals are often incredibly hard to get right but with a score as sizzling as the sun on the beach and some incredibly skilled performers,
The real joy in the show comes from the hilarious bloodshed of the inevitable demise of the characters at the hands of the villain.
The show follows a group of American stereotype-satisfying high-schoolers who are heading out to the aptly named Innocent Beach during Spring Break for the party of a lifetime. On the way, they are warned by an old gas station owner of the dangers they could face if they continue, due to a barnacle-covered undead surfer who died in a competition and now walks the beaches at night looking for new victims. Inevitably, they don’t take his advice and then things get messy.
The show doesn’t make any challenges to the genre, with the set characters of geek, outcast, jock, popular girl, slut and closet homosexual all filled as they should be. This makes for a certain predictability which could have been twisted a little more in order to bring something different to the show. Aside from this the writing is solid, with the best comedy coming from the quick-fire exchanges and arrogant high-fives and fist bumps from the characters.
The performances are constantly impressive; the young company proving they are vocal talents to be watched. Stand out performances both vocally and character-wise come from Katriona Perrett and Seánna O’Neill who really inject a great energy and vigour into their contrasting characters. The musical prowess of the live band is obvious, with the intricate score being played to a T.
The real joy in the show comes from the hilarious bloodshed of the inevitable demise of the characters at the hands of the villain. Using inventive ways of getting the onstage gore to work simply and effectively, the comedy drawn from these ridiculous deaths sets this production aside from many musicals on the Fringe.
