'Departure Lounge' by Dougal Irvine

Birds, booze and beaches: it’s the perfect holiday formula for the thousands of Brits that visit the Costa del Sol every year. It’s no different for JB, Pete, Ross and Jordan, four lairy London boys on tour in Malaga and the stars of Departure Lounge by Dougal Irvine –one of the most hilarious and energetic musicals you’re likely to see at this year’s Fringe.

The personalities of the boys, who are on one last group holiday before starting university, are ideally set up: there’s the bossy but protective leader; the quiet one bound for Oxford; the "misunderstood" orphan; and the closet homosexual who gets all the girls. As they while away the time in Malaga’s departure lounge waiting to board their long delayed Ryanair flight—a situation with which many of us can identify—the layers of the loud-mouthed personas are peeled away, revealing four surprisingly well-rounded individuals who are helplessly endearing, despite their penchant for rowdiness.

The catchy, melodic musical numbers that punctuate each twist and turn of Departure Lounge are played with understated skill on acoustic guitars by Phil James and composer Irvine, huddled quietly in the corner. The universally excellent performances add an infectious exuberance into the proceedings; the strong chemistry between the actors makes the fictional bonds of friendship seem all the more real.

Better still, the choreography is dazzling – the boys skip about the stage with confidence, using every inch of its space and injecting a liveliness into the play seldom seen in such a small cast. And while the sparse dialogue can be a little stilted in parts, the whole production is slickly executed and will have you humming its deliberately boyband-esque tunes long after its uplifting ending is over.