WW Reviews

This one man musical follows the true story of Noam Tomaschoff who discovered his father was not his biological father upon taking a 23&Me DNA test, which he bought because it was on sale. His parents asked him not to tell anyone and along this journey of reidentifying himself Noam discovers the identify of his biological father along with many siblings and writes this musical.

This story, at times, felt selfish as Noam seemed only concerned with his feelings and constantly dismissed the feelings of his parents which the show tried to portray as funny and charming but just felt oblivious. The songs were fine but appeared to be more of a chance to give Noam a showcase rather than to really drive the story forward in the traditional musical sense. Reframed as a play with music would help set expectations for the show.

The personal story and realisations of Noam were incredibly interesting as was the family history but I would have liked more of an exploration of how his parents came to be okay with him telling what is not just Noam’s story but his parents as well. This musical won the Best of Fringe Toronto award and this did make me wonder about the quality of performances at the Toronto fringe but on reflection may show the chasm between North American and British sensibilities and culture. Noam appeared to be showing off but in North America I think it may be seen as simple confidence and if it is a cultural difference then it provides an interesting dilemma for the show. Whether to try for broad international appeal or whether to stay very true to the story and focus on a North American audience.

Performance:
Monday 19th August 2024
17:30
Gilded Balloon Patter House – Doonstairs

Cast: