'We've Got Each Other', the almost entirely imagined Bon Jovi Musical, to arrive at Hull Truck Theatre

The Bon Jovi jukebox musical is finally here. Except, it’s up to the audience to imagine it all, with the help of just one man: theatre maker Paul O’Donnell (photo credit Alex Brenner). 

Modern jukebox musicals usually involve a multi-talented cast, an orchestra, opulent sets, decadent costumes, extravagant routines, dramatic key changes and the odd hydraulic lift or two. We’ve Got Each Other has none of these things, but Paul will still try to create an all-singing, all-dancing spectacle simply using the power of imagination.

Through entertaining descriptions of the show as it unfolds, and 180+ lighting cues, Paul invites the audience to ‘fill in the gaps’, to imagine the breath-taking, and tragic, love story of Tommy and Gina. 

Expect glitter balls, high camp and one incredibly catchy 80s tune. This feel good show celebrates the community that is formed when artist and audience meet, and the extraordinary things that we can achieve when we come together, if we just… believe.

We’ve Got Each Other was a critically acclaimed hit at Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2018. The show won the BE Festival Audience Award 2018 as well as the Young FITT Festival’s Audience Award and Best Performer Award in Spain. The show was also awarded BE Festival Early Ideas Award 2017 and China Plate’s First Bite Commission 2017.

The award-winning show has also received Arts Council England funding in a bid to make the show completely accessible for B/blind and D/deaf audiences using Talking Birds Theatre Company's revolutionary new access tool, The Difference Engine.

The aim is to make the access provisions not only 'functional', but also 'creative' and 'engaging'. Paul has re-visited the rehearsal room and worked with trained Audio Describer Stuart Reid, blind artist Lucy Haywood and Difference Engine Operator, Will Jackson, to ensure that the show is not just accessible to B/blind and D/deaf audiences, but also fun. Audiences will gain access to the audio descriptions and captions via an application on their phone, alternatively handsets will be available at Hull Truck Theatre and support can be provided to all audience members who need it.

For more information about The Difference Engine go to: www.podonnell2.co.uk/access

Paul O’Donnell says:

“Making the show accessible and enjoyable for all audiences is extremely important to me. Accessibility is not an add-on to We’ve Got Each Other, but integral to the show and we’ve taken time to ensure that scenes will work for all audiences. We hope that our visual and hearing-impaired audiences will feel like they are not missing anything from the experience, but instead can enjoy added elements and in-jokes with the satirical audio description and humorous captioning that other audience members will miss out on.

An audio described, captioned version of a Bon Jovi musical is probably not the first thing you think of when you think about accessible theatre, but that’s what makes We’ve Got Each Other so unique!”

We’ve Got Each Other will arrive at Hull Truck Theatre on Saturday 13 April.