Review: RUTH THE MUSICAL, Wilton’s Music Hall

Photo credit: Charlie Flint

Based on a true story, Ruth The Musical follows the life of Ruth Ellis in 1950s Britain. Ellis was the last woman to be executed in the UK, and this musical looks at her life, both in and out of prison, through different representations of the main character in the lead up to the inevitable execution, highlighting on important topics from power to patriarchy to domestic violence.

As a story alone, this is a historically engaging show, exposing the general public to the hidden complexities and inner battles of Ruth Ellis’ life. This musical offers a new lens of history, providing contemporary relevance to the complex and emotionally moving story that may not be common knowledge to many. The storyline is clearly strong, but the pacing is what holds the show back from reaching its full potential, moving very slowly throughout and causing many scenes to lose their gripping quality.

As the title, source material and production company (Ruth Theatre Productions) suggests, the most gripping and demanding character is that of protagonist Ruth Ellis. This role is carried out by three separate actresses who each portray a different era of Ruth’s life: Past Ruth (Hannah Traylen), Cell Ruth (Bibi Simpson) and Young Ruth (Mei-Li Yap). Mannerisms and characterisation are consistent yet distinct across all three iterations and, other than Traylen, both actresses were impressively making their stage debuts.

Yap is a striking performer, showing duality between the characters she multi-roles, but as her character of Young Ruth doesn’t get much stage time (unlike Simpson who maintains her character whilst remaining onstage in her cell throughout, even when not part of scenes), it would have been great if there was more unity communicated through visual cues like styling and costume design. Traylen is a powerful, standout performer who makes for a gripping lead throughout the show, highlighting the emotional intricacies and inner battles of Ruth Ellis, particularly in sensitive scenes regarding alcoholism, miscarriage and being a victim of violence.

Nicolai Hart-Hansen’s set design is simple yet effective, communicating the core locations of the show with a sense of believability and artistic flair. The set is married with projections from video designer Ben Bull; this may at first seem like a hugely modern technological choice for such a historically driven show, but instead of being a jarring edition, these projections blend successfully into the mise-en-scène, providing ambience and amplifying noir visuals.

Undeniably talented singers grace the cast, bringing strong vocals to the table, but the score itself isn’t very engaging for the most part. Two of the songs are memorable but the rest tend to blend into one another without truly enhancing the storyline. Using ballad style songs more sparingly could have benefited the pacing of the show and made any remaining songs feel more special and intentional instead of repetitive. One of the stronger musical numbers is courtroom song ‘Hypocrite’ that provides a high energy burst of feminine rage with catchy lyrics and entertaining staging.

Ruth The Musical provides interesting historical insight into the complex life and ongoing battles of Ruth Ellis and her legacy featuring standout lead performances, yet bringing this story onto the stage is met with occasional resistance due to slow pacing and songs that don’t quite match the demands of the story.

*** Three stars

Reviewed by: Heidi Downing

RUTH The Musical plays at London’s Wilton’s Music Hall until 28 March, with further info here.