Back and Forth: The Musical - by the way, there is a dragon
14 Jul 2022

by Drew Rowsome - photos supplied by publicist

The Fringe festival is winding down and I want to get this review out while it can still do some good getting bums in seats. So here I sit trying to keep my personal procrastination fairy at bay. The protagonist of Back and Forth: The Musical, Dayjan Lesmond (who also wrote the book, music and lyrics, directed, and is credited as the 'executive producer'), is working on a pitch for an animated series The Swordsman. Much to the chagrin of his swivel-hipped agent, Nikki Haggart, Lesmond is continually distracted by a particularly persistent, energetic and sexy procrastination fairy, Dante Toccacelli. 

short pause while I google photos and profiles of Lesmond and Toccacelli. And am not disappointed

Unlike most of us, Lesmond is not distracted by social media, porn or Grindr, he is a gamer involved in a competition with his best friend and "art rap" practitioner, Mateo Chavez Lewis. Lesmond also works using cursive writing in a notebook. His laptop makes an early appearance before being spirited away by Toccacelli and his evil acrobatic assistants Josh Alcantara and Mercedes Ranjit. Just as well as notebooks are much more dramatic when waved about in dance numbers or games of keep away.

short pause while I google an article I vaguely remember about how difficult it is to translate the act of writing, particularly on a keyboard, into dramatic action. The Shining excepted

More realistically Lesmond's therapist Georgia Grant also keeps handwritten notes even though her professional ethics are shaky: she also treats, simultaneously to facilitate trio numbers, Lesmond's agent. Will she help Lesmond conquer his procrastination problem? This is a musical, of course she will. And she does so with an 11 o'clock number "You're enough." Yes, unfortunately the stakes are not particularly high and Back and Forth: The Musical bears a glancing resemblance to an after school special. Or a pre-teen show on Disney+. 

short pause while I google High School Musical to see if I can use it as a comparison before I decide it is a dated, inaccurate reference. And Zac Efron's look is too plastic in comparison to Back and Forth's leads' appeal

But the resemblance is also a compliment as the talent on display is solid and fully committed to their roles. It is no easy task to sing over unforgiving canned music while unmiked, but the cast manages and sells the numbers. The songs are tuneful and, while the lyrics may not be intricate or clever, the songs all build to the rousing place they need to be at. The choreographer, Alanna O'Reilly, sends the cast bounding across the stage exuberantly, but also adds details—the procrastination fairy always dances just a casual beat behind his cohorts—that are entertaining.

short pause while I google photos of the Bad Idea Bears from Avenue Q in pursuit of a now abandoned idea that Back and Forth's Alcantara and Grant resemble a nuclear grade version of the furry puppets

That tagline in Back and Forth's promotional material, "And, by the way, we have a dragon," is true, though the special effect is better than the metaphor. The cast's enthusiasm and zeal however is a perfect metaphor, procrastination and fear are no match for a stage performer giving their all and basking in the spotlight. If the blackouts had just been a bit tighter, I wouldn't have had time to let my mind wander and wonder why Lesmond doesn't do battle with, or better yet oil wrestle, his procrastination fairy.

long pause as I google Turkish oil wrestlers and worry that I am advocating cultural appropriation

Having Toccacelli be the dragon's head is a nice tidy metaphor, but the sword swallowing left me puzzled, even though Lesmond does explain that happy endings are overrated. But Back and Forth is a musical and happy endings are de rigueur.  So the therapist explains that overachiever Lesmond (which is apparently also accurate in real life) is allowed to procrastinate because of his fear of not being good enough. The procrastination fairy's exultation that "admit its fun to get nothing done" is no match for the therapist's "you can be imperfect and live and thrive."

longer pause while I wander and debate whether I have provided too many spoilers. My personal procrastination fairy is working overtime

Back and Forth does what the Fringe is designed to do: put on a show. Aside from the post-pandemic glee of actually being able to enjoy the finest art of all, live theatre, the exuberance and dedication on display gives one hope. There is a powerful piece of musical theatre amid the psychobabble that mars Back and Forth and with a good dramaturge, a bit more nerve (Lesmond, in the only sexual interaction that isn't subliminal or a dance move, only "orbits" a girl he finds attractive which sets the procrastination fairy's wings aflutter), and the time to explore a bit more, this show would shake the foundation's instead of just entertaining. 

short pause as I google the requirements for a Fringe show and discover that yes, there is a time limit

Song and dance express what characters are incapable of expressing in words or simple actions. The creators of Back and Forth, Nightjan Productions, are billed as "a BIPOC, queer, and neurodiverse-led company that is committed to creating and casting shows starring and featuring BIPOC, queer, and neurodivergent characters." But there is a tagline: "without any of those facets being the central focus." A noble aim. And necessary because we don't live in a perfect world where that would already be standard practice. But I can't help but speculate that the subtexts running rampant throughout Back and Forth might be more dramatic stage material. Just as Lesmond's character is wrestling with turning a peplum cartoon dragon slayer into a "Disno" production, his procrastination fairy might just be righteous reality struggling to get out.