[NoHo Arts District, CA] – A NoHo Arts theatre review of “Four” written and composed by Clé Holly, directed by John Coppola, produced by Loch Lyle Music Publishing and Muse Picholine Media in association with Fringe Management, LLC at the Hollywood Fringe Festival 2023.
This is such a fascinating play. It begins with an ending. A string quartet has lost its founding member to cancer. As they gather for one final performance together to honor their fallen leader they are faced with a quandary. Their megalomaniac manager has brought them a replacement lead violinist. He believes he has an ironclad contract and has every right to make them keep performing. Unbeknownst to the group, he has lost all his other clients and is on the edge of financial ruin. So the quartet is quite literally everything to him. Still raw from the death of their beloved leader, they stumble on and with a new young violinist they begin to see a future, new life in the old team…but that is where it all gets even more difficult.
Sometimes success can feel like a betrayal and this is one of those times.
At its heart this is a melodrama. But it’s also a very intimate portrait of how musicians live. Barely surviving on their portion of the take from Bar Mitzvahs and weddings and gallery openings, they eek out a living, trying to make it through another year without resorting to a proper job. In the end though, many have to choose between the music and a life.
“Four” is a glorious play, truly. The performances are lovely, truthful and interesting. Some of the music is live. Some is not, but the blend works and the entire performance is played out as if they are onstage or in rehearsal, which is perhaps where these musicians live the most. With their instruments in their hands. I loved it. Bravo for bringing something totally different to Fringe and for making it feel so real.
I hear this is on its way to The Edinburgh Festival! So, unless you are planning a trip, get your tickets now for “Four.”
Only two more performances!!
When:
Remaining shows: Thursday, June 22 @ 9:30 p.m. and Saturday, June 24 @ 5:30 p.m.
Where:
The Broadwater Theatre
6320 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90038