This is, as a fellow theatregoer pointed out to me afterwards, a tad too complicated for an orchestra, with forty or so musical numbers in various styles to get through, as well as sections of spoken dialogue, in around eighty-five minutes. The cast of six are therefore supported in this production of The Musical of Musicals (The Musical!) by musical director Natalie Pound, without further accompaniment. It’s an impressive achievement, really, given the sheer variety of music in this parody … [Read more...]
London Musical Reviews for West End and Off West End
If you are planning to visit London to see a musical on stage at one of the West End theatres, or a musical in one of the many Off West End or Fringe venues, then maybe our London musical reviews section can be of help? Read one of the latest reviews or use the search button to find and view one of our previous reviews. We use a star rating system on our site.
Six: ‘something about the feistiness, the sassiness, the riotousness of it all’
There’s a good mix of musical styles amongst the ten musical numbers, though most of the melodies are firmly in the style of what I call ‘minicab music’ – the sort of chart music tunes I would only listen to if I were being driven home and the driver just so happened to have the radio on. But there’s something about the feistiness, the sassiness, the riotousness of it all. I liked the music so much I bought the cast recording on the way out. It only leaves me to wish Six a long and glorious reign.
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ON YOUR FEET! The Story of Emilio and Gloria Estefan
The second half is better than the first in On Your Feet! A New Musical (to give it its full title) - which makes perfect sense given the chronological order of the storyline, starting with Gloria Estefan (Philippa Stefani) before she was even discovered by Emilio (George Ioannides) whilst still living at home in Miami, Florida - her family having left Havana to escape the worst effects of the Cuban Revolution. Naturally, when the Miami Sound Machine, the Latin music band founded by Emilio, had … [Read more...]
Cabaret at New Wimbledon Theatre | Review
Bill Kenwright’s production of Kander & Ebb’s classic musical Cabaret is back on tour just two years after it played at various theatres around the country with Will Young as the Emcee and Louise Redknapp as Sally Bowles. This time they’re replaced respectively by John Partridge and Kara Lily Hayworth and a completely new cast. However, everything else stays the same including direction from Rupert Norris and choreography by Javier De Frutos. The background for the 1966 multiple Tony … [Read more...]
Review of Be More Chill at The Other Palace, London
The narrative, at a macro level, has certainly been done before. If, for instance, you’re after a variation on the old theme of good triumphing over evil, look elsewhere - a sharp correction in the right direction in the life of Jeremy Heere (a suitably fresh-faced Scott Folan) is about as subtle as the melting of the Wicked Witch in The Wizard of Oz. Jeremy, a bit of a social outcast at high school, finds a way to increase his popularity. His motive in proceeding with a course of action that … [Read more...]
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie at the Apollo Theatre 2020
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie has now been running in the West End for over two years and, as there have just been substantial cast changes, it seemed the right time to see the show again. For those who don’t know, Jamie is about a 16-year-old Year 11 school leaver in Sheffield who is passionate about becoming a drag queen. It is based on the true story of Jamie Campbell who appeared in a BBC documentary in 2011. The story of the musical is fairly predictable, but well written and … [Read more...]
Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – New Wimbledon Theatre | Review
Back in the mists of time - well 1968 - before Evita and before Jesus Christ Superstar, a young and ambitious pair of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice wrote and presented a little musical show. Since then, the show has become a firm favourite, with audiences world-wide and especially with Schools and amateur groups with over 20,000 of them staging productions. The show is, of course Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and I caught the latest touring production during its visit to the … [Read more...]
Beautiful The Carole King Musical at Churchill Theatre | Review
I had to admit that I’m not a big fan of jukebox musicals but I’m an enormous fan of Carole King having seen her live on a number of occasions, have nearly all of her albums and even worked for her record company back in the day! So, it was with some trepidation that I set out for Bromley to see Beautiful - The Carole King Musical at the Churchill Theatre but I have to admit that I was pleasantly surprised. The plot itself is very thin as King had a mainly uneventful life. She met Gerry … [Read more...]