REVIEW: I FOUND MY HORN by Hasper Rees and Jonathan Guy at White Bear Theatre 31 Jan – 11 Feb 2023

‘frustratingly under-developed. But for lovers of the French horn, it’s a blast’ ★★★ ½

In the clutter of his attic, Jasper, a just-divorced man with a teenage son, finds the French Horn he used to play at school. The piece explores the steps he takes to get good(ish) at playing the notoriously difficult instrument, and his efforts to build bridges with his son. There are lots of characters, all played with wit and brio by Jonathan Guy Lewis, and lots of horn playing, delicately charting the progress he makes. Jonathan Lewis can obviously play the thing quite well, but he does a very convincing job of playing it very badly indeed.

How his playing progresses is the most developed aspect of the play, and Jasper’s increasing joy in music making is the heart of it. There are lots of incidental characters effectively presented, lots of very funny moments, a nicely developed Yorkshire brass tutor, and a big hole where the character of the son should be. Building back his relationship with his son should have been the emotional focus, but he was presented as an unengaging, un-developed, surly teen, with no identifiable personality. This is a great shame, because the writing is otherwise sparkling and effective, and Jonathan Lewis has the skill and charm to make a more serious look at the father-son relationship interesting. As it is, it’s just a bit too sketchy.

The horn playing earns the play four stars, the sketchy characterisation earns it three, so three and a half stars for the whole thing. It’s fun to watch, very well performed, and frustratingly under-developed. But for lovers of the French horn, it’s a blast. On till 11^th February.

Photos: Alex Marker

I FOUND MY HORN by Jasper Rees and Jonathan Guy Lewis

White Bear Theatre

138 Kennington Park Road, London SE11 4DJ

31 January to 11 February 2023

Tuesday to Saturday at 7.30pm

Tickets £17 & £12 concessions

Box Office:

https://www.whitebeartheatre.co.uk/whatson/I-Found-My-Horn

Cast: Jonathan Guy Lewis

Writers: Jasper Rees & Jonathan Guy Lewis

Director: Harry Burton

Designer: Alex Marker

Lighting Designer: Chuma Emembolu

Social Media:

Twitter: @WhiteBearTheatr & @ifoundmyhorn

Facebook: WhiteBearTheatre & IFoundMyHorn

Reviewed by Chris Lilly

Chris read Drama at Hull University in the 70s, stage-managed a bit, spent 8 years as a community arts worker in Tower Hamlets, did the occasional tech job, then taught in East London and participated in shedloads of community theatre. Since retiring from teaching, he has acquired an MA in Theatre from the University of Surrey and indulged a passion for live performance anywhere in London courtesy of his Freedom Pass.