Review: The Harder They Come (Stratford East)

Review by Sam Waite

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Starring reggae singer Jimmy Cliff, 1972’s The Harder They Come had the distinction of being the first feature film produced entirely in Jamaica and with a Jamaican director, Perry Henzell. A piece of naturalist filmmaking, the film combines a loose retelling of the life of outlaw folk hero Ivanhoe Martin and a new story about an aspiring musician who ends up on the wrong side of the law.

Premiering at New York’s Public Theatre and now making a London debut at Stratford East, Suzan-Lori Parks’ musical adaptation again follows Ivan, a charming “country boy” hoping to make his way as a recording artist in Kingston. While vying for the attention of almighty producer Mr Hilton, Ivan finds work as a repairman under a local preacher, whose kindhearted ward he is immediately smitten with, beginning a trend of his own charms and desire for fairness creating conflicts with powerful adversaries.

Keeping the core narrative largely intact, Parks has wisely softened some of Henzell’s sharper edges. While Jimmy Cliff made an impressive debut as a professional actor, his charming presence could only do so much to alleviate the shock of a particularly brutal encounter between Ivan and Longa, a member of Preacher’s flock, to say nothing of later acts of adultery abd violent revenge. Instead, Parks’ version of the character maintains a sense of justness, his actions motivated by a combination of fairness and fear, and he becomes easier to truly root for as a result.

Faced with the unenviable task of filling Cliff’s shoes, Natey Jones proves to be perfect casting for the role of Ivan Martin. Blessed with a swaggering charisma that ensures any judgement against the character stops at a smiling eye-roll, Jones also has the vocal prowess to pull off a demanding vocal performance, particularly stirring in the title number and a powerful 11 o’clock duet with Madeline Charlemagne, “Sitting In Limbo.” Charlemagne, as love-interest Elsa, benefits from a deepened character arc, and brings enough wit and presence to the role to contrast Jones’ charm-assault and create a believable romance. Her vocals also soar, particularly on the aforementioned duet, her solo opening of which is truly captivating.

Cliff’s work on The Harder They Come has permeated beyond the screen thanks to the now-iconic soundtrack album. The reggae icon’s music is used here, both in the form of songs featured on that legendary album and released outside of it – his cover of “I Can See Clearly Now,” a contribution to the Cool Runnings soundtrack, makes for a strong act two opener. As well as making strong choices for where to place the existing music, Suzan-Lori Parks has crafted original songs to expand the storytelling on stage, as well as reworking Cliff’s lyrics to better fit the musical theatre structure, and doing well to incorporate other artists’ contributions to the original soundtrack.

Indeed, Parks has done a fine job of blending the pre-existing songs into her expanded story, scoring big laughs with Cliff’s “You Can Get It If You Really Want” first appearing as the conversion anthem “He Will Save You,” before the original version takes the place of a traditional I Want Song when Ivan pleads his case to his doubtful mother. “Johnny Too Bad,” a popular track on the original album and a play on those around our hero expecting him to turn to crime, is now a lament on his desires to be better than what is anticipated of him, as well as a way to introduce a more flirtatious, less chaste component to Elsa. Their courtship is something Parks’ script is particularly successful in deepening, and the story is all the better for this palpable, easily believable chemistry.

Across the board, the cast bring boundless energy to their performances, shifting seamlessly from a boisterous chorus to a more grounded, gossiping community. Jason Pennycooke, as Preacher, carries himself with the right mix of superiority and salaciousness, as well as offering up some strong vocals of his own, while Danny Bailey and Thomas Vernal bring good amounts of menace and dismissiveness to drug lord José and unscrupulous producer Mr Hilton, respectively. Particular praise must go to Josie Benson, who brings passionate vocals and an air of genuine love and terror to Ivan’s mother, Daisy.

With a daunting runtime of nearly three hours, factoring in the interval, The Harder They Come keeps up a steady pace under the guidance of director Matthew Xia. Returning to Stratford East after the re-mounting of Tambo & Bones, not to mention a lifetime connection to the venue, Xia continues a strong track record of authentic and character-driven storytelling, balancing the requisite energy of an upbeat musical with the gritty realities of the source material. Xia’s longstanding affection for Henzell’s film, as discussed in the programme and other promotional materials, is abundantly clear, while his sense of kinetic energy and how best to humanise his characters soften the harsher edges the same way that Parks’ script does, showing a real understanding between collaborators and respective visions.

Designers Simon Kenny and Jessica Cabassa, on sets and costumes respectively, help to balance Xia and Parks’ more digestible, vibrant vision with the dark corners of the film, especially as seen in its third act. Kenny’s set is attractive and lively without disregarding the “dirty and smelly” (Daisy’s words, not mine!) nature of the streets, and Cabassa outfits Ivan in suitably flashy garb as he becomes a fame/hungry outlaw, as well as providing some surprisingly scandalous costumes for a church-group fantasy sequence in the first act. This sequence is a bright jewel in the crown of choreographer Shelley Maxwell, also acting as intimacy director, bringing sensuality and humour alongside the joyous routines found elsewhere.

Gino Ricardo Green adds to the show’s visual identity through video design, projecting news broadcasts on Ivan’s escapades overhead and bringing in a hanging sheet on which to projects frames of spaghetti westerns and of Ivan himself taking the mantle of “hero.” In paper the thin sheet is a cheap, distancing touch, but with it's introductory scene being a visit to the Rialto for an education on heroes never dying, and Ivan’s eternal quest for justice and fairness, it fits perfectly unto the visual language of the production. Dominique Hamilton, who both designed and supervises the hair, wigs, and makeup for The Harder They Come, completes this visual identity with period-appropriate hairstyles and makeup looks, helping to ground the show in the Jamaica of the early 1970s.

Being not only a musical, but an adaptation of the film credited with bringing reggae to a worldwide audience, The Harder They Come also has a distinctive sonic identity. Nicola T. Chang reunites with Xia to provide sound design, creating impactful soundscapes to fill out the world and balancing the cast’s vocals, the music, and the sound effects accompanying violent moments later in the story. Proving invaluable, the production also employs a live sound designer, Tony Gayle. With live theatre being unpredictable and some things impossible to anticipate, Gayle’s presence is invaluable as adjustments are made on the fly and technical mishaps are sidestepped with quick-thinking – as was the case on press night, when a quick adjustment to the sound levels allowed Madeline Charlemagne’s stirring vocals to be heard clearly despite a brief mishap with her microphone.

Obviously there are many others who came together to create this brilliant piece of theatre, and to name all of them and list their contributions would be impossible, as more and more names and even more successes would come to mind. However, I would be remiss to not mention the eight-piece band, led by musical director Ashton Moore. Moore, Luke Bacchus, Shirley Tetteh, Derrick Taylor, Marley Drummond, Will Miles, Grifton Forbes-Amos, and Nathaniel Cross play marvellously, having been tasked with bringing reggae into musical theatre spaces, and vice versa. Music is so central to The Harder They Come, so important to its beating heart, that without them there truly would be no show.

Having seen the show early in its previews, I was already impressed with the material as I'd seen it. By their official opening, the team had crafted something so vivid, so extraordinary, and so alive with kinetic energy and clarity of vision, that it was as if I was seeing every scene, hearing every song, for the first time all over again. Some movie-to-musical adaptations don't work because, even when the characters literally sing, their personalities do not sing – that is, their personalities and expressions of emotion don't lend themselves to bursting into song – while Ivan in particular lives in music. Not only does he sing on his record, but his heart keeps a constant melody, and the new and existing songs help to fill in his personality, his history, so we can learn little about him and still come away feeling utterly connected.

The Harder They Come plays at Stratford East until November 1st

For tickets and information visit https://www.stratfordeast.com/whats-on/all-shows/the-harder-they-come

Photos by Danny Kaan