Dark of the Moon review – bluegrass girl meets emo witch boy and their songs soar

Charing Cross theatre, London
The power and personality of its singers and music lift this Twilight-esque story into the realms of enjoyably ridiculous

The origins of this supernatural musical are in ancient British folklore but it plays out as a teen love story in small-town America. Young, spirited – and human – Barbara Allen (Lauren Jones) falls in love with John the Witch Boy (Glenn Adamson), from a community of Witches and Conjur People.

She is willing to incur the wrath of parents and neighbours in her Appalachian town to be with this mysterious man who has drifted in from the Smoky Mountains and is rumoured to have diabolical powers. He is willing to abjure his immortality to spend the rest of his life with her. Both are rebels, determined to be together despite social censure. The matriarchal Conjur Woman (Josie Benson) throws down the gauntlet: if the couple can be faithful for a year, John wins his mortality.

At Charing Cross theatre, London, until 8 August