Tripod Versus the Dragon

Tripod vs the Dragon is, on one hand, something that you might think is a bit niche; a play - and it is a play, bordering on a musical - based on a game of Dungeons and Dragons doesn't indicate to anyone unfamiliar with the game to carry the genuine heart this play does.

Tripod hit a number of familiar beats throughout. Gatezy is sex obsessed and a bit dim; Scott is less savvy and a bit nerdy; Yon is weird and brilliant. The jokes aren't one dimensional, but if you don't find Tripod's usual schtik funny you're probably not going to here. But their formula is freshened by the inclusion of Alana Stone, who has one hell of a voice and provides another source of humour throughout.

The real key to this is the music, of course. Tripod cut their teeth on acappella, and so this piece unfolds with a wealth of background music, with either a piano, a guitar or simply other voices providing rhythm or choral arrangements. In some songs you'll get some trumpet or a solo singer, in others there's just voices providing the change. But there are a number of tunes that truly stand out; Ivory Tower is a mysterious haunting tune, foreshadowing the rest of the plot; I will still play is completely drops the humour of the rest of the piece, and is the most straightforward honest portrayal of the soul of an artist. There's genuine love of the subject in this, and the final two songs of the piece reflect real world emotion bound up in this play. Of course there's a few songs dedicated to humour, and they're great as well.

If they should ever tour this again or licence it out, I'd be there to see it with bells on.