Aspects of Love
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A Tangled Romance: Aspects of Love on the West End
The West End has long been a stage for ambitious musical storytelling, and Aspects of Love, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s intimate exploration of passion and desire, stands as a distinctive chapter in its history. Premiering at the Prince of Wales Theatre on April 17, 1989, this production ran for an impressive 1,325 performances, closing on June 20, 1992. With music by Lloyd Webber, lyrics by Don Black and Charles Hart, and a book by Lloyd Webber based on David Garnett’s 1955 novel, the musical directed by Trevor Nunn offered a sophisticated, operatic take on love’s complexities. Revived in 2023 at the Lyric Theatre, Aspects of Love remains a polarizing yet enduring West End gem, proving that “love changes everything” in Theatreland.
Origins and Creation
Aspects of Love emerged from Lloyd Webber’s fascination with Garnett’s novella, a tale of overlapping romances across generations. After the global triumphs of Cats and The Phantom of the Opera, Lloyd Webber sought a smaller, character-driven project, collaborating with lyricists Black and Hart to adapt the story. Initially conceived as a film, it morphed into a stage musical, workshopped with a sung-through structure a departure from the spectacle of his earlier works. Nunn, fresh from Les Misérables, brought a cinematic sweep to the intimate narrative, while Maria Björnson’s designs evoked a lush European backdrop.
The West End premiere followed a year of refinement, opening with Michael Ball as Alex and Ann Crumb as Rose roles that would define their careers. Produced by Lloyd Webber’s Really Useful Group, it arrived as a bold contrast to the composer’s blockbuster norm, banking on its emotional depth to captivate audiences.
The Plot: Love’s Many Faces
Spanning 20 years from 1947, Aspects of Love unfolds across France and Italy, tracing a web of romantic entanglements. Alex Dillingham, a young Englishman, falls for Rose Vibert, a struggling actress, after seeing her perform. Their whirlwind affair falters when Rose leaves him for his uncle, George, a wealthy artist twice her age. Years later, Alex returns to find George and Rose married with a daughter, Jenny, who by her teens develops a crush on Alex, her cousin. George’s death shifts the dynamic, leaving Alex torn between Rose and Jenny, whose flirtation teeters on taboo.
Enter Giulietta Trapani, George’s Italian mistress, who complicates loyalties further. The story resolves with Alex rejecting Jenny’s advances, choosing solitude as Rose and Giulietta find solace together. It’s a tapestry of love romantic, familial, unrequited woven with lush melodies and a bittersweet sting, challenging audiences with its moral ambiguity.
A Musical Tapestry
Lloyd Webber’s score is a lyrical feast, steeped in operatic grandeur yet tender in its intimacy. “Love Changes Everything,” Alex’s soaring anthem, became a global hit, while “Seeing Is Believing” captures his early bliss with Rose. “The First Man You Remember” haunts as George and Jenny’s waltz, and “Anything But Lonely” reveals Rose’s restless heart. Recurring motifs like the “Aspects” theme thread the sung-through narrative, a nod to Lloyd Webber’s classical influences.
The Prince of Wales orchestra, conducted by Michael Reed, delivered the score’s richness, earning praise for its “ravishing” quality (The Guardian). The 2023 revival, with Jonathan Andrew Hume’s orchestrations, tightened the pacing, proving the music’s timeless allure even as its lushness occasionally overshadowed the story.
The West End Journey
The 1989 premiere starred Ball, whose youthful tenor made “Love Changes Everything” a chart-topper, alongside Crumb’s fiery Rose and Kevin Colson’s suave George. Diana Morrison’s Jenny and Kathleen Rowe McAllen’s Giulietta completed a cast that balanced vocal prowess with emotional nuance. Björnson’s sets French villas and Venetian canals dazzled, though Nunn’s staging drew mixed reviews for its slow pace. Running over three years, it won 1990 Olivier Awards for Best Musical and Best Actor (Ball).
Revivals followed: a 1993 Palladium concert with Michael Praed, and a 2010 fringe run at the Menier Chocolate Factory. The most recent, opening July 8, 2023, at the Lyric Theatre, ran 147 performances until November 11, directed by Jonathan Kent with Michael Ball as George, Laura Pitt-Pulford as Rose, and Jamie Bogyo as Alex. This reimagined take trimmed to two hours earned acclaim as “achingly beautiful” (Evening Standard), reinforcing its West End legacy.
A Global Echo
Before London, Aspects tested Broadway in 1990, running 377 performances but faltering against Phantom’s shadow. Tours in the U.S., Australia, and beyond followed, with a 1993 cast recording preserving Ball’s iconic Alex. The 2023 revival’s success spurred plans for further stagings, its intimacy a counterpoint to Lloyd Webber’s grander works. Its sung-through style influenced later musicals, though its niche appeal limits mass revival potential.
Why It Persists
Aspects of Love endures on the West End for its bold exploration of love’s messiness an antidote to fairy-tale romance. Lloyd Webber’s score, with its operatic sweep and earworm melodies, carries a story that dares to unsettle, while its smaller scale offers a refreshing contrast to Theatreland’s bombast. The 1989 run’s marathon success and 2023’s fresh take prove its adaptability, resonating with audiences who savor its emotional daring. For London, it’s a sophisticated rarity less a blockbuster, more a delicate dance of the heart.
A Love That Lingers
In the West End’s vibrant history, Aspects of Love shines as a lyrical labyrinth from its 1,325-performance debut to its 2023 encore. Whether it’s Ball’s youthful Alex or his seasoned George, the musical’s blend of passion and poignancy keeps Theatreland enthralled. Its revivals like love itself shift and evolve, reminding us that “anything but lonely” is a promise worth singing. In London’s theatrical mosaic, Aspects of Love remains a tender, tangled triumph a melody that changes everything.