“The nerve of her having your face”, and so begins Identical, a musical of great humour and heart. Directed by Trevor Nunn - credits include Starlight Express, Cats and Les Misérables - with music and lyrics by multi-award winning musical theatre writing partnerships Stiles and Drewe, Identical is based on Erich Kästner’s novel Das Doppelte Lottchen, which sees two identical twins separated as babies meet at a summer camp and eventually swap places and lives.
The story will also be familiar to those who have watched The Parent Trap - either the 1988 or 1961 take - only this time music - especially those catchy choruses - takes centre stage. The life-swap situation provides the perfect springboard for cheeky quips and heartfelt laughs in equal measure, with the twins Lisa and Lottie portrayed brilliantly by real-life twins Kyla and Nicole Fox.
Within minutes of the curtain lifting we’re immediately transported to an alpine summer camp and straight into a very chipper chorus (In the Summer), which sets the tone for things to come. A mutual dislike between the twins on first meeting is put aside once they quickly put the puzzle pieces together leading to an emotional musical reunion (You’re My Sister). So catchy is the latter that no matter where you find yourself during the interval, you’re sure to find someone either humming or singing at full pelt this sweet sister number.
