Julieta Cervantes
Stereophonic is a stage play from playwright David Adjmi along with music composed for the play by Arcade Fire’s Will Butler. The show is known for getting the most Tony nominations for a play ever in 2024, when it also won many awards too. This is not a musical though — it’s about a band in 1977 as they struggle to record a follow-up to their number one first album. The entirety of the show takes place in a functional recording studio — part of the show is that they sometimes playback remixed versions of what we’ve just heard. It’s a more naturalistic approach, with nary a fourth wall break in sight.
As such, there are live performances by the actors playing musicians, all of whom are playing the actual instruments, but we rarely hear an entire song. In the play we follow a never named band composed of American vocalist Diana (Claire DeJean) and vocalist/guitarist Peter (Denver Milord), alongside Brits vocalist/keyboardist Holly (Emile Koutachou), bassist Reg (Jake Regensburg), and drummer Simon (Cornelius McMoyler). Throughout the story we also follow lead engineer Grover (Jack Barrett) and his number two, Charlie (Steven Lee Johnson).
In short, the group is talented but a mess. Peter is an unpleasant boyfriend to Diana and an abusive, persnickety producer of the album. Reg and Holly are married but on the rocks due to Reg’s severe drug and drinking problems. Simon is living across the world from his wife and family back home in England, and Grover becomes forced to manage all of these conflicts and personalities despite his best efforts not to get involved.
The show is long — two hours and 50 minutes plus a 15 minute intermission, although that’s shorter than the original which was about 10 minutes longer. I will say that the show has a lot of long pauses and quiet moments, which aren’t bad in context, but there are a lot of them — the show really didn’t need to be this long. It’s an intimate sort of story, benefiting closer seats and a smaller theatre, which is good in this case — the character drama is fairly basic but well acted, and the musical moments are orchestrated excellently.
Julieta Cervantes
The cast is great, with everyone getting at least a few moments to shine — Claire DeJean sings beautifully and showcases the most fully realized arc, while Denver Milord does a great job as the admittedly talented Peter that you really dislike. This beat is also a bit of a problem in the show, as we have a little too much of him on the stage, when the character is so unlikable — although this is no fault of the actors.
Emile Koutachou shows excellent chemistry and rapport with Reg in their complicated way and less complicated as a normal friend with Diana. Jake Regensburg uses a sort of riff on a sort of quasi-Cockney accent that pays homage to the many troubled British rock stars, and Cornelius McMoyler gets to show off big, funny moments alongside several meaningful quieter ones.
Jack Barrett as Grover holds the whole thing together, always trying to keep his cool thus making the blow-ups more significant, and he has a great rapport with Steven Lee Johnson’s Charlie, who has the most purely comedic role of the group.
I can easily see that this is a divisive sort of show for many people — although the staging and performances are great, it’s a long show and it’s not really a musical when you might expect something called Stereophonic to be one. But if you don’t mind the length (and take advantage of that intermission) and are more invested in a smaller character piece, it’s a pretty interesting, different sort of play than we usually see.
Stereophonic runs about 2 hours and 50 minutes with one intermission. Recommended for ages 13 and up. The play contains simulated drug use and adult topics.
Stereophonic runs through March 1 at Washington DC’s National Theatre. Other cities on the tour include Boston, Durham, Charlotte, Tampa and more. Visit the official website for more information. Use our Ticketmaster link to purchase tickets.
STEREOPHONIC at The National Theatre
Stereophonic On Tour
Check our Ticketmaster link for ticket availability.
