Qulture Magazine

Words: Cliona Mccann.

January 6th the Musical is a wacky in-your-face musical comedy following Jessie and Kiely as they are wrongfully accused as insurrectionists and arrested. In theory, this show could be great; the concept is ridiculous, the cast is magnetic, and the plot points themselves are funny. However, it fell slightly short of the mark for me.

I saw the elements of a great show appear intermittently, but they rarely converged for more than a few gags at a time. It had the charm of an SNL sketch, but also the hit-or-miss tendencies they are famous for. There were some stellar moments of physical comedy (Jessie becoming aware of her skeleton had me in stitches) but the writing left a lot to be desired. This was especially evident in the musical numbers, although well-performed and choreographed.

The writing felt surface level and obvious at times. The many, many, many levels of irony sometimes struggled to land and the final 15 minutes or so came across as a weak attempt to be ‘meta’ or self-aware, as is the current theatrical trend. By the end of the show, I was well aware of the fact I was the only non-American in the room; maybe my issues with the show are a broader transatlantic taste gap?

Overall, I had fun at this show – Kiely and Jessie are undoubtedly entertaining performers. They possess a gusto and infectious energy which they impressively maintain throughout the 50 minutes. However, January 6th the Musical needs time to mature and refine for a more cohesive piece.