Bristol Hippodrome until 24th November 2018
3.5****
Reviewed by Lucy Hitchcock
One of ITV’s most successful and easily recognisable shows has been brought to the stage for their UK tour, and what a holiday you will be treated to!
Following Sophie and Ben, a married couple who are shipped off to the Solana after their stay in Altea goes awry, we see their disgust and anger at the Solana Staff, headed up by Joyce Temple-Savage. Jaqueline, Mateo, Liam, Sam, Kenneth and cabaret singer Asa are still in the Solana but have been alerted of holiday inspectors posing as a disgusted couple who are out to close down the hotel for good. The staff believe Sophie and Ben to be the inspectors, so go out of their way to ensure their holiday is perfect. Ben, befriends Jacquline, an old swinger who is only out for one thing! Whilst he tries to enjoy his holiday, his wife is wooed by Mateo ( Jake Canuso) who tries to use his charm to ensure the hotel stays afloat.
Having seen many episodes of Benidorm, it was a treat to be able to see the original cast excel on stage, where the characters truly belong. Kenneth and Liam (Tony Maudsley and Adam Gillen) were stand out, bringing their already larger than life characters to a stage where they could enhance their performances and play off the audiences fantastic reactions! The skimpy hot pants and camp jokes were exactly what the audience wanted! Together with Janine Duvitski as Jaqueline, they made an astonishing amount of double entendres that would put a pantomime to shame! Sherrie Houston and Jake Canuso as Joyce Temple-Savage and Mateo made us laugh and tantalised our minds with Mateo‘s shirtless scenes, fancy flamenco dancing and suggestive costume!
Derren Litten has brought a super show to the stage, with an easy to follow storyline, dance, song, frivolity and fun! Asa Elliott as the Cabaret singer of Neptunes Bar treated us to his fabulous voice at varying points of the show and Shelley Longworth as holiday rep Sam Wood soared through the auditorium with her exceptional voice for a finale that will put the heat back into this freezing winter, take you to Benidorm and make you sing dance and smile along! Not to be missed!