Marylebone Theatre
Playing until 13th April 2025
Photo credit: Marc Brenner
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Following an anti-Nazi resistance group, the White Rose, and actions taken by the group’s prominent members, this is a pertinent story given modern day politics and how the needs and voice of minorities are increasingly neglected and silenced. Siblings Hans (Tobias Turley) and Sophie Scholl (Collette Guitart), with support from their friends Willi (Owen Arkrow) and Christoph (Danny Whelan), led on the writing and distribution of White Rose leaflets, aiming to arouse like-minded people to see through Nazi’s lies and authoritarian regime during World War II.
This production sets a strong foundation for an emotional journey, establishing each character’s role and principles early in the process. Sophie is a revolutionist and refuse to bow down to things she considers to be wrong, while Hans is a protective older brother trying to keep Sophie safe. Among this, we are also shown snippets of Willi’s trauma and Christoph’s hesitations in the group’s actions. Finally, the student’s professor, Kurt Huber (Mark Wilshire), who become increasingly supportive and joins the White Rose’s movements. Despite a strong premise, neither the spoken dialogues nor musical numbers create the impact needed to create a sense of urgency for the White Rose movement and felt like the emotions of characters are constantly held back and does not fully convey the passion and fear of the group.
Although Natalie Brice’s score and Brian Belding’s lyrics are pleasant to hear, they don’t fit well with the flow of the plot. This is combined with some questionable creative choices that further undermine the grandeur of what the students hope to achieve. Early into the musical, the students gather to talk about change, using the power of words to spur others into action. This is a moment of revolution, the start of something much bigger, and one would expect an energetic, lively and roof shattering number and accompanying choreography. Instead, it felt contained, and under Will Nunziata’s direction, we saw Hans and Willi performing on a small chair. While this creates some layer by elevating the height of selected members of the cast, it also hugely restricts their movement, and confines the actors to far more limited expression in that particular moment.
Despite an experienced and strong cast, the feelings conveyed through words and songs were underwhelming. Rather than determination and driven by a common goal, there was an overwhelming sense of indifference and the characters seem to be going with the flow and not acting as leaders of a revolution. Similarly, those in the roles of Nazi soldiers (Danny Colligan and Thomas Sutcliffe), did not create a sufficient sense of intimidation to fully embed the horror under the Nazi regime. Although there is the general historical context, there needs to be a sense of urgency created by what’s on stage to justify the actions of various anti-Nazi groups.
Despite weaknesses in the material and direction, Tobias Turley was able to convey the persona of a protective older brother and the length in which he would go through to keep Sophie out of harm’s way and also has the chance for a couple of strong musical performances. The other standout performance was delivered by Charley Robbie in the role of Lila, a young Jewish girl under a false identity and trying to escape detection, and managed to deliver one of the stronger and emotional ballads in this musical.
Following an Off Broadway run, White Rose transfer to London shows promise, particularly in the current political climate. However, there is much scope for further development in order to strike fear, passion and determination. As it stands, the revolutionist protagonists struggle to find their voice and instigate the change promised.
Creatives
Creator, Book, lyricist: Brian Belding
Composer: Natalie Brice
Director: Will Nunziata
Musical Director: Caitlin Morgan
Orchestrator, Copyist: Paul Schofield
Set Designer: Justin Williams
Costume Designer: Jean Gray
Lighting Designer: Alex Musgrave
Sound Designer: Dan Samson
Producers: Sam Houlihan, Samuel Biondolillo, Jess Laurinaitis
Executive Producer: Thomas Hopkins Productions
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