When I noticed this manufacturing on the Hammersmith Eventim Apollo in August 2022 with an all-star forged together with Jennifer Saunders, Keala Settle and Beverley Knight it was a glitzy star-driven present with ticket costs as much as £250 to justify and whereas pleasing I famous that the present was designed for the UK Tour to comply with and would symbolize significantly better worth in regional venues across the UK. The tour arrived on the New Victoria Woking this week with a full home on a Monday night time with a high worth of £62 and proved that it’s a fantastic feel-good occasion night time out. The tour will now proceed till April 2024 with 24 extra venues to go to so there are many alternatives to get a celebration collectively to go and benefit from the present.
Clive Rowe continues because the pleasant cop Eddie Souther, Steady Eddie to his pals, and is an absolute pleasure together with his fantastic voice and wonderful comedian contact, you immediately heat to his character, and he actually shines in “I could be that guy”. The criminals he seeks to arrest are Curtis Jackson performed with a powerful seventies vibe by Jeremy Secomb and supported by a hilarious trio of gangsters performed by Bradley Judge, Tom Hopcroft, and Damian Buhagiar. They are nice collectively in “When I find my baby” after which actually ham it up in “Lady in the long black dress”. They transported us again to these seventies discos of their look and strikes, nice enjoyable and offered a number of the present highlights.Lesley Joseph is fantastic as Mother Superior demonstrating all her sensible comedian timing and delivering her songs with nice poignancy, attraction and a contact of humour. Her stage expertise shines by way of, and her pure stage presence holds you spellbound as she slowly melts in her acceptance of Deloris who the present revolves round. Sandra Marvin might not have the charisma of Beverley Knight because the would-be cabaret singer and gangster’s moll Deloris Van Cartier, however she steadily blossoms on stage as her character develops and is a triumph by the top of Act two. She delivers a succession of highly effective soulful seventies tunes from her first look with “Take me to heaven” and “Fabulous, Baby” by way of to the show-defining “Sister Act” and the uplifting “Raise your voice”.
The Ensemble of Nuns work exceptionally nicely in reworking from dreadful singers into a formidable gospel choir with robust characterisations all through. Anne Smith has a very good cameo because the rapping conductor Mary Lazarus and Lizzie Bea continues because the pleasant harmless postulant Mary Robert with a beautiful model of “The Life I never led” exploring her self-doubt. Catherine Millsom performs Mary Patrick at her fearsome finest swinging incense bottles on chains within the ultimate battle. The lack of three Ensemble members from the forged for the tour does make the stage look sometimes half-filled for the large musical numbers however the joyous power of them within the dance numbers is infectious and brings a smile to the viewers.The Production is slickly staged and lit with flown panels with built-in lights, sufficient structure to recommend the inside of the Nunnery and easy settings for the Police station, Eddie’s spare bed room or an area bar. The stage does look empty at instances, nevertheless it leaves loads of house for the set-piece routines. Director Bill Buckhurst and choreographer Alistair David make sure the tempo is maintained and there are some pretty touches just like the chase of the rickshaw, Souther’s fast costume change and the ultimate gunfight within the convent. The Finale costumes by Morgan Large are a gloriously glittering rainbow twist to the standard nun’s behavior that naturally brings the present to a celebratory conclusion.
This is a enjoyable musical with a various forged of all sizes and backgrounds that mix collectively right into a full-blown ensemble manufacturing that entertains and step by step emotionally engages you. Still, most of all it’s merely a pleasure to look at. Definitely a present to see when it visits your City over the subsequent yr.Review by Nick Wayne
Rating: ★★★★
Seat: Stalls, Row F | Price of Ticket: £62