Emma Rice‘s musical adaptation of Romantics Anonymous is returning to Bristol Old Vic from 18 Jan – 1 Feb ahead of a US tour, following its critically-acclaimed London debut.
Angélique is a gifted chocolate maker inhibited by social anxiety and Jean-René is the boss of a failing chocolate factory. When Angélique takes a job in Jean-René’s struggling factory, a fragile love affair unfolds. Funny, tender and painfully awkward, Romantics Anonymous is a delicious love story about breaking the mould and finding the courage to be happy.
The Artiscape spoke with Me’sha Bryan who previously appeared in Caroline, or Change in the West End, UK tour of The Lion King and As You Like It Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre.
Can you tell us about the character you play?
Bryan: I play two principal characters in the show: Suzanne and Mimi. Suzanne is in charge of bookkeeping, admin and HR at the chocolate factory. She’s loyal, honest, dedicated, likes a bit of a laugh and has worked at the factory for a number of years. Admin isn’t her dream vocation but she’s good at it, she cares about Jean-Rene and the future of the business and has a great rapport with her co-workers Ludo and Magda. Mimi on the other hand has certainly lived an interesting life. She’s a smiley, helpful member of “Les Emotifs Anonymes”, a self-help group that she attends to talk about the fact that she’s unable to say the word “No”. She will literally do anything you ask her to which ends up with hilarious results.
Suzanne is more settled and sure of herself so I find that I’m more grounded with her and my mannerisms and voice follow suit. However, with Mimi being slightly more on edge, I’m more lifted in the body, my vocal is lighter and I’m much more of a fidget. It’s nice to play such varying characters; it keeps me on my toes!
What other character do you admire in script and why?
Bryan: I admire anyone who takes themselves out of their comfort zone in order to achieve something for the greater good or for the benefit of others.
I don’t want to give away any spoilers but Angelique is willing to make herself extremely uncomfortable and do something that, to most, would seem trivial but to her mind is completely unthinkable in order to save the chocolate factory. Jean-Rene strays from the overly detailed path his Father laid out before him therefore going against his entire upbringing in order to save the livelihoods of his workers.
I admire Ludo for believing in himself, for having dreams and never being afraid to put himself out there and share them with others. I admire Mimi for finally forcing herself to say “No” when it looks like Angelique and Jean-Rene’s relationship is on the rocks. I admire Madame Marini for her loyalty and helping an old friend give their business a new lease of life. There are a lot of admirable characters in this show!
What appeals to you about the script?
Bryan: I’m a person who likes to see growth and development in others. Whether change comes about via outside forces or internal realisation, most characters in the script discover and learn something new about themselves which makes them shift their paradigm in order to become better people.
Where once stuck in a rut, they find the courage and inspiration to make positive changes which is always nice to see. The light, playfulness of the script appeals also as, being a bit of a silly person, I love anything tongue in cheek that isn’t trying too hard to be funny. It just is.
What do you think an audience will enjoy about this production?
Bryan: As well as being an actor, I’m also a professional vocalist and vocal coach so I’m all about the music. Michael Kooman (Music) and Chris Dimond (Lyrics) have written the most fantastic score. It’s a joy to sing and audiences will love it too.
There are only 9 of us in the cast but the cleverness of the composition makes us sound like many more. It’s a feel-good production and, as a whole, is very sweet – no pun intended! It’s funny, it’s energetic, it doesn’t take itself too seriously but has its moments of pathos which will leave audiences thinking about what they’ve seen and (hopefully) humming along for days afterwards.
What are you looking forward to in performing in this play?
Bryan: It’ll be quite nice to dance off some of the Christmas cake I ate during December! Joking aside, it’ll be great to flex my accents muscles. I get to be French, cockney, I do a watered-down RP and a really hammed up version of my native Wolverhampton accent. It’s fun! The cast and crew are lovely too so I’m sure we’ll have a brilliant time working together on tour.
Romantics Anonymous runs at Bristol Old Vic from 18 Jan – 1 Feb. To book tickets visit https://bristololdvic.org.uk/whats-on/romantics-anonymous .
