Ballad Lines Review – Heartbreaking, soulful folk music for the ages | Musicals

MMost of the music of Central Appalachia—the mountainous region connecting Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, and the Carolinas—derives from the Scots-Irish people who settled there. It was Ulster immigrants, who passed on their loud tunes and sad sing-alongs, who gave the United States some of its first versions of country music.

Composer Finn Anderson and director Tania Azevedo use that journey to tell a musical story across generations. Our starting point is New York couple Sarah and Alex moving into their new home and Marie Kondo in a mysterious box sent to Sarah by a dying aunt. It turned out to contain audio tapes that traced the song’s origins back up the family line, a reconnection with Sarah’s West Virginia roots that were at first unwelcome and then increasingly transformative.

No kidding: this music would move anyone. Anderson’s music powerfully evokes the source material it explores, and the band’s singing positively evokes the traditional songs – The Four Marys, Handsome Molly – which he incorporates and adapts with the fluidity that has accompanied them over the centuries.

In an almost all-female cast, Kirsty Findlay is heartbreaking as Kate, the spirited but troubled wife of a Scottish minister living in the 17th century. Meanwhile, Ena Tresvalles brings her wits to the script, playing teenage Jean in 18th-century Londonderry (“If God had not wanted us to be tempted, he would not have invented sailors”). It’s their respective pregnancies that feed into the show’s themes of motherhood and choice — the first act number, “An Unexpected Visitor,” is a highlight — that outshines the contemporary story.

And with wonderful support from Sian Louise Dowdalls as Jane’s boisterous sister and Allie Kennard – who brings a lively empathy to all the male roles – it’s hard not to find yourself wishing these characters would return to the stage for some of the New York scenes. Aunt Betty does not largely emerge from her narrative role until late in the day, and the finale delivers its message with all the precision expected of a voice from the grave.

However, there is nothing wrong with any of the vocal performances in this production brimming with folk energy (not least in an exciting number in the second half). It’s a worthy tribute to the music he loves – and hopefully the show can share it more widely.