Aylesbury Waterside Theatre – until 11 November 2023
Reviewed by Susan Portman
4****
Previously titled The Band, the show broke box office records and delighted audiences around the United Kingdom when it performed from 2017 – 2019.
Celebrating the 30th Anniversary of Take That’s first ever UK number 1 single Pray and coinciding with the summer 2023 release of the movie of this smash hit musical. Greatest Days is sure to be a night out you will Never Forget.
The story however is not about Take That. This is a tale of tragedy, friendship and of five band obsessed friends, who attended their first concert together at the tender age of sixteen joyous with dreams about their future, only to reunite as adults to see the band for one final time.
I listened to Take That in the 90’s but being in my twenties at the time, I wasn’t really into boy bands. I didn’t really appreciate their music until they reformed, so I really wasn’t sure what to expect with this show.
I went along with my friend Sofia after having a quick bite to eat before curtain up. Unsurprisingly, there were a lot of women in the audience that probably would have
been similar ages portrayed by the girls in the show.
The presentation opened revealing a young teenage girl, Rachel, played by Olivia Hallett, sitting listening to the radio in a kitchen. The Band were on, and she was imagining them right there in her room, before her very eyes. Then the ‘Boy Band’ entered, singing in the kitchen. Because Rachel’s home life was so difficult to say the least, and to drown out the sound of her arguing parents she asked the boys to sing louder, they obliged! We have all been there as teenagers, whether its arguing parents, annoying siblings or some other distraction – all conspiring to prevent you from listening to your favourite tunes.
The set itself was fairly basic, but it was cleverly adapted throughout the show by moving blocks around to take the changing scenes very quickly and efficiently from kitchen to school lockers, from a bus and airport even to high rocks overlooking the town. It was clever, and effective. Well done to the team for this design.
The initial teenage cast were replaced by adults later in the story but I could still see the underlying personalities coming through. It was fabulous how the Take That songs that we know and love so well were weaved into each act. We all have songs that take you back to a defining moment of your life, or remind us of a place or a person.
I must say I wasn’t expecting it to be an emotional journey but it was, straight from the first scenes (there is a twist). I was worried it might be too emotional but actually it was fun, honest and beautifully written.
You could easily relate to one of the five teenage characters – the dreams that we have as teenagers, the family related issues that we had no control over. How everything is so important at the age of sixteen, until a tragedy occurs that throws your world upside down. Of course – music winds itself like ivy around such events.
I loved all of the characters but I can’t say that there was any single stand out part in
the show. The singing voices of all of the ladies were excellent. Bayley Hart, the understudy, who played Debbie has an incredible voice.
The characters were all believable and very funny, and I particularly enjoyed the way that the teenage characters were re-introduced into later scenes alongside their adult characters, with the boy band singing the Take That songs. Great stuff!
When the girls met up again as adults, it was true to life to see how a tragedy in their youth had defined or changed their future but the love and respect they had for each other as teenagers was still there over 20 years later. Let’s be honest, we can all relate to this. There was plenty of humour, especially ‘Dave the Janitor’ played by Alan Stocks, who also played the parts of the bus driver, the airport crew at the gate in UK and Greece and the Greek police officer) and he was adept at effortlessly switching into these roles.
This entire production was first-class, with laughter, tears and plenty of good old fashioned entertainment. The finale was fabulous, the cast encouraged the audience to their feet, and they began dancing and singing as a febrile collective. When the lights came up and I left the theatre, I felt that feel good factor that you would desire from any theatre performance and the Waterside once again delivered in spades. One lady we were chatting to in the lift summed it up quite well when she opined that she arrived at the theatre feeling a tad glum on a dark Tuesday evening in November, but she left feeling like she was already going into the weekend.
This is definitely a show for all those wishing to banish those autumn blues.