Having experience myself working ‘backstage’, ‘The Backstagers’ graphic novel series was right up my alley. It focuses on new student Jory who has just transferred to a new all-boys private high school. His mother encourages him to join a club to spend his time, so he heads over to the theatre, curious about the Drama Club. This idea immediately backfires when he finds the club full of narcissistic actors who couldn’t care less.
The only people who treat him like an actual person take the form of the backstage crew. There's the lighting whizz Beckett, set builder Hunter, the level-headed Aziz and the adorable little helper Sasha. We are also later introduced to the Stage Managers, Timothy and Jamie, who are definitely a comedic pair. These are the ones behind all the magic of the theatre... with 'magic' being the keyword. An entire world sits behind the stage underneath the school: a maze of prop rooms, flowers made from stage lights, rivers of rainbow paint, and all sorts of monsters and crazy creatures!
Not only do these guys use these rooms to make brilliant shows, but they also keep people safe by stopping monsters getting out and letting lost actors wander inside. There is also the mystery of what happened to a previous backstage crew that never came back out in the 1980s.
The series is very well written by James Tunion IV (Detective Comics, the Woods) and the story is brought to life with the fantastic illustrations by Rian Sygh (Adventure Time, Munchkin). It flows well, and some of the panels are just pure artwork in themselves, well-drawn and coloured.
As a matter of fact, I'm rereading this series, having read the first two volumes once before and now rereading them with the release of the third. I found myself sitting in the staffroom laughing away at a lot of the scenes, earning a few puzzled looks but I didn't mind. A definite recommendation for any young adult having trouble fitting in or has an interest in the behind-the-scenes of theatre... or you're like me and have a love for fantasy worlds.
Reviewed by Rhianon Edwards
Catalogue link: The Backstagers
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