LondonTheatre1

London Theatre: Tickets Reviews | News | West End | Off-West End | UK Touring Productions

Book Tickets for London Shows
  • Home
  • Top Selling Shows
    • Musicals
    • & Juliet
    • Anything Goes
    • Back To The Future
    • Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club
    • Come From Away
    • Dear Evan Hansen
    • Dirty Dancing
    • Frozen The Musical
    • Heathers
    • Jersey Boys
    • Les Miserables
    • Mamma Mia
    • Mary Poppins
    • Matilda the Musical
    • My Fair Lady
    • Moulin Rouge
    • Only Fools and Horses
    • Pretty Woman the Musical
    • Six the Musical
    • The Book of Mormon
    • The Drifters Girl
    • The Lion King
    • The Phantom of the Opera
    • Tina the Musical
    • Wicked
    • Popular Plays in London
      • A Christmas Carol
      • Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
      • The Mousetrap
      • The Woman in Black
      • Witness for the Prosecution
    • London Theatres
      • Seating Plans
      • Adelphi Theatre
      • Ambassadors Theatre
      • Duke of York’s Theatre
      • Fortune Theatre
      • Harold Pinter Theatre
      • Lyceum Theatre
      • New Wimbledon Theatre
      • New Wimbledon Theatre Studio
      • Piccadilly Theatre
      • Richmond Theatre
      • Trafalgar Theatre
  • News
    • Interviews
  • Reviews
  • ATG Tickets
    • Alexandra Theatre
    • Aylesbury Waterside Theatre
    • Brighton Theatre Royal
    • Bristol Hippodrome
      • Bristol Theatre Seating Plan
    • Edinburgh Playhouse
    • Glasgow Theatre Royal
    • Grand Opera House York
    • King’s Theatre Glasgow
    • Kit Kat Club London
    • Leas Cliff Hall
    • Liverpool Empire
    • Manchester Opera House
    • Manchester Palace Theatre
    • Milton Keynes Theatre
    • New Theatre Oxford
    • New Victoria Theatre Woking
    • New Wimbledon Theatre
    • New Wimbledon Theatre Studio
    • Princess Theatre Torquay
    • Regent Theatre Stoke
    • Rhoda McGaw Theatre
    • Richmond Theatre
    • Stockton Globe
    • Sunderland Empire
    • Swansea Arena
    • Victoria Hall Hanley Stoke
  • Dancewear
  • Newsletter
Home » Reviews » Review of What Would Julie Do? – Soldiers in Petticoats

Review of What Would Julie Do? – Soldiers in Petticoats

May 28, 2018 Last updated: May 28, 2018 2:36 pm By Chris Omaweng

What Would Julie Do? - Soldiers in PetticoatsThere was a fleeting but nonetheless noticeable silence a few minutes into this latest edition of What Would Julie Do?, a series of live performances celebrating the life and career of Dame Julie Andrews. The irony was not lost (at least, I don’t think so) on the audience on the announcement that a guest performer had to pull out of this musical theatre cabaret because in the precise words used, “she has no voice”. How does one react to that, given what happened to Dame Julie in the late Nineties, when surgery on her vocal cords resulted in the loss of her singing voice?

As the old adage would have it, the show must go on. This show took ‘Soldiers in Petticoats’ as its theme. The short explanation is that it’s taken from a lyric in ‘Sister Suffragette’, a number in the motion picture Mary Poppins (omitted from the stage musical version): “We’re clearly soldiers in petticoats / And dauntless crusaders for women’s votes / Though we adore men individually / We agree that as a group they’re rather stupid!”. The slightly longer explanation, at the risk of giving too much away, is that ‘soldiers’ and ‘petticoats’ are traditionally associated with the male and female gender respectively, but we’re now seeing women on the frontline, and men are being encouraged to ‘open up’ a little more – that is, to display figurative petticoats. That is, in turn, emotions other than anger.

A self-confessed “feminist rant” from host Rosie Williamson did seem to suggest proverbially fighting fire with fire. It was balanced out, however, by highlighting the sheer number of male suicides in Britain on a daily basis because, in part, of a tendency to not seek help with regards to mental health issues (just as there is a reluctance to seek medical attention with regards to physical health ailments). Elsewhere, Williamson rattled through carefully pre-prepared remarks at quite a pace, keen not to waste time – and why not? It may not have been the sort of cabaret show where the host interrupts themselves and starts awkward conversations with people in the front row, but there’s nothing wrong with being slick and polished. You know, like Dame Julie.

A selection from a song cycle called ‘December Songs’ didn’t provide the sort of cheer, albeit seasonal, that such a title might suggest. It was left instead to numbers such as ‘I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair’ from South Pacific and ‘My Body’ from The Life to raise the roof, the latter being especially timely, Williamson thought, in the light of a recent referendum in the Republic of Ireland, which paves the way for significant reform to abortion legislation. The range of songs – both in terms of content and tempo, was quite impressive, and reminded me of an American tourist’s remarks about the British weather: “If it’s not to your taste, hang in there, buddy. It will change.”

Williamson was joined by Elise Allanson, Lucy Clough, Rebecca Ridout and Joanna Thorne – and if the first half had variety with a capital V, the second was an opportunity for power songs and mellow melodies to reign supreme, bookended by a bolshy Beyoncé number, ‘Run The World (Girls)’, reprised at the curtain call. Some light amusement was found in ‘Times Like This’ from the musical Lucky Stiff, in which dogs are praised for being the perfect companion for a lady. ‘Like Love’, from the musical comedy Charlie Girl, not seen in the West End since 1986, tells an intriguing narrative about a young lady who would rather have even a small percentage of the man she loves than one hundred percent of anyone else.

A brisk but buoyant production, it’s a confident celebration of life and freedom of expression, using show tunes to lift people’s spirits. As they sing in Les Misérables, “Even the darkest night will end and the sun will rise.”

4 stars

Review by Chris Omaweng

What Would Julie Do? Live returns to The Pheasantry for another evening of musical theatre therapy. Singer, Actress and Blogger, Rosie Williamson has long been compared to Mary Poppins, but outward appearances can be deceiving: She is, like most of us, far from practically perfect in every way. Rosie often takes hypothetical advice from the guru of musical theatre perfection, the superstar, the legend that is…Dame Julie Andrews. Whenever she is in a stew, she asks: “What Would Julie Do?”.

Sister Act Tickets

Invisible: Written and performed by Nikhil Parmar

Nikhil Parmar’s one-man show, originally written as a TV pilot, manages to touch on a wide range of themes from Islamophobia to modern fatherhood with … [Read More...]

Figure presents a semi-staged performance of Handel’s Serse

Handel’s 1738 opera Serse (or Xerxes) is an exploration of power, love and human frailty. King Serse falls in love with the voice of his brother … [Read More...]

Lea Salonga Dream Again, Royal Albert Hall

Lea Salonga has her fans. She also has some superfans, the ones who yell, “I love you Lea!” at almost every opportunity. If that wasn’t enough, there … [Read More...]

Singin’ in the Rain at New Wimbledon Theatre

I have no hesitation in saying that the 1952 movie “Singin’ in the Rain” and its 1985 stage version is one of the greatest musicals of all time, … [Read More...]

Metamorphosis at the Lyric Theatre, London | Review

There are, Maria Caruso was keen to emphasise in a post-show discussion, no wrong answers when it comes to responding to Metamorphosis or even … [Read More...]

London Theatre 1 and London Theatre One are Registered Trademarks Copyright 2022 www.LondonTheatre1.com
By using our website you’re confirming that you’re happy to accept our use of cookies.
Privacy Policy & Cookies - Advertising - About Us - Newsletter - Contact Us

As an Amazon Associate our website receives a commission from qualifying purchases from Amazon.