By Grace

There is little in a standard diet of fringe shows that can prepare you for American high school students performing musical theatre. After watching By Grace, I would guess that only heavy sedation can adequately fortify someone against a score of school children from North Carolina belting out their unceasingly sincere brand of theatre in this star-struck homage to one of the most famous celebrities of the last century.

The production has all the fingerprints of an obsessed drama teacher. Parallel narratives follow a cardboard cut-out cast of characters living vicariously through Hollywood icon Grace Kelly as her marriage to the Prince of Monaco approaches. Each character learns the inevitable life lesson as the Grace Kelly fable takes hold of their lives, the gigantic images of the soon-to-be Princess Consort providing a none too subtle backdrop.

The plot and dialogue are so derivative that each scene appears lifted directly out of the cheesiest portrayals of 50s society. Yet the drama is almost bearable compared to the hideously mundane musical numbers, each reeking of cliché and false sentiment. The only redeeming feature of By Grace is the professionalism shown by its school-age cast, who embrace the dull material with an enthusiasm it doesn't deserve.

As a monument to an excellent and incredibly beautiful actress, By Grace adequately portrays how people across the US became obsessed by the starlet's life and marriage. As entertainment, it leaves you feeling nothing more than mildly annoyed.