Review: Here you come again

Have any of us really gotten over our pandemic lockdown trauma? Genevieve Spiteri reviews Here You Come Again, a Dolly-Parton-flavoured musical about navigating the hardships of life, with a few Parton hits along the way.

Are any of us really over the lockdown? No, not really. I mean, it took out most of our prime social life!

So when I went to see the brand new musical Here You Come Again, I had some uneasy thoughts: Is it too soon to tap into the pandemic? How will they elevate an otherwise life-changing but ultimately very boring part of our lives in a way that won't come off as cringeworthy? What does Dolly Parton have to do with this?

But Here You Come Again has pulled off something very special and entertaining; a musical with a fun ensemble using Dolly Parton's biggest hits that dips into our collective grief and reminds us that we're never really alone.

Get ready for a full Dolly Parton convert entirely localised within protagonist Kevin's (Dash Kruck) Bendigo home. (Image: Cameron Grant)

Here You Come Again is a wonderful, lovingly crafted jukebox musical based on the COVID-era lockdowns of 2020. The production uses music by Dolly Parton and features the queen herself, portrayed by the co-writer and conceptual mother of the show, Broadway star and multi-talented actress Tricia Paoluccio.  

We follow Kevin (Dash Kruck), a 40-something man who has just moved into his parents’ attic in Bendigo following a breakup with his Melbourne ex. The loneliness and isolation get to him, causing him to spiral and think about all the things that are going wrong in his life. As he approaches his lowest point, drinking, wallowing in his emotions and listening to his Here You Come Again record, Dolly Parton magically appears from his poster on the wall to give Kevin support and guide him through this experience.

At the heart of this story is a personal and deeply emotional feeling of loneliness, hopelessness and desperation for our lives to get better, a sentiment that the Melbourne Comedy Theatre audience resonated with. Everyone can share a little of Kevin's pain, following Victoria's long lockdowns. I think we all wish we had our own, personal Dolly Parton during those nightmare years to pull us out of the pit we found ourselves in.  

Tricia Paoluccio delivers a wildly impressive impression of Dolly Parton. (Image: Cameron Grant)

As is standard in Melbourne at the moment, the performances are absolutely amazing. Paoluccio’s Parton is ridiculously good, and she maintains the accent, posture and attitude required for the portrayal the entire performance. And her singing voice manages to be an amazing impression of Dolly Parton’s. Her overall performance is so spectacular, you might forget what Dolly Parton actually looks like, as Paoluccio fits the character so well and replaces any memories in your mind. 

Dash Kruck’s Kevin is also really good; he steps into the funny but depressed character excellently and makes the audience empathise with him through his remarkable energy and sincerity. He lets you reflect on how you felt in those years through his character arc. 

The supporting cast is utilised very well, creating depth and volume to scenes when they are present (or rather hallucinated), and a deep emptiness when they are gone. Kevin's Mum (Kellie Rode), Jeremy (Bailey Dunnage) and Tish (Laura Joy Bunting), along with the band (Andrew Worboys on keyboard/sometimes Kevin's Dad, Tina Harris on Bass, Luke Herbet on drums and Ash Murdica on guitar), help to populate the stage and create liveliness with their live musical performances. It's good to see Here You Come Again continue the trend of an interactive band (SIX, Come from Away, Hadestown, etc.).

Kruck (right), Paoluccio (left) and crew, delivering iconic songs. (Image: Cameron Grant)

The only smidge of criticism I can give to Here You Come Again is that some of the song lead-ins felt forced, as if we had to fit Jolene in here somewhere, so why not now? However, this only affects some of the songs, and they are so good that you promptly forget how the song started. This is in stark contrast with the vast majority of jukebox musicals, where the song entrances can be very distracting.  

The Australian adaptation team, made up of Fiona Harris and Mike McLeish, have done an absolutely wonderful job of adjusting the book to connect with an Australian audience. From the Australian accents used to the references to Bendigo, Melbourne and Toowoomba, and even the Milo container used as a flowerpot, Here You Come Again feels uniquely Australian and especially Victorian.

And the set is simply magnificent, the perfect isolation attic with the relatable amount of clutter and random items we would assume the character would have – it fits Kevin’s characterisation so well.  

Take the time to appreciate how detailed and personal Here You Come Again's set is. (Image: Cameron Grant)

A detail I loved is that at the beginning of the musical, Kevin’s bed is wildly unmade, but throughout the show, the bed is slowly tucked in and finally perfectly made; it's a nice way of showing Kevin's mental health. I especially remember all of the ‘bed rules’ during lockdown – 'you should always make your bed as soon as you wake up, it will make you feel better, you need to keep your phone away from your bed so you don’t doomscroll until the morning, you can’t do online school or work from your bed, you have to do it at a desk.' It is little references like these that round out the musical and leave me wondering if they were intentional or perfect coincidences.  

This production has been put together by a large number of people, and their dedication to making an important story truly shines through. It's the show's emotional core that really drives it home and makes your heart warm. Set to a stunning soundtrack of Dolly Parton’s greatest hits, the clock is running out to see this spectacular musical, as it leaves Melbourne on the 20^th of July and returns in October.