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	C venues - C nova (venue website) Musicals 2-12, 14-27 Aug, 7:45pm-8:45pm Reviewed by Lee Zhao
Recommended for age 12+ only.

Some Small Love Story is a four-part narration of two parallel romantic stories, interspersed with intimate musical ballades. The highs and lows of the lives of young couple, played by David Kristopher Brown and Veronica Hare, are juxtaposed with the story of an old widower as told through his twenty-something grandchildren, played by Serena Manteghi and James McEwan.

This is clearly a talented cast under the eye of a skilled director, Noreen Kershaw (whose pedigree includes Coronation Street, Shameless and Heartbeat). The delivery is word-perfect, the timing slick and the voice acting is in earnest. The static staging, however, feels awkward. Only moving from the waist up, the actors remain planted in the same spot until they take the audience's applause, which gives a sense that this musical could easily have been broadcast on Radio 4.

Still, the show could have sparked into life with a more engrossing book. Peppered with clichéd episodes such as falling in love on New Year's Eve, a car accident and a case of broken heart syndrome, it was a story I felt I have heard countless times before. It all has an air of a solid playwriting exercise on the topic of love and loss. I also fail to understand why the non-linear narrative clearly signposts its destination a third of the way into the show. The ending was robbed any great emotional weight and hence was almost as flat as some of the vocals.

Although Some Small Love Story is not a particularly spectacular musical, it is not an offensively bad one either. After all, this is a repeat of a show that was nominated for the Musical Theatre Matters award for Best Lyrics last year. It does also possess a delightfully charming original score by Gavin Whitworth. As previously mentioned, I could easily imagine keeping this musical on the radio in the background whilst I am driving, or pottering around the house; just as long as everything is tuned correctly.