Mayflower Theatre Southampton – until Saturday 27th July 2019
Reviewed by Leanne Caplis
5*****
A mix of Benidorm, Love Island and Mamma Mia the 80’s-tastic sensation that is Club Tropicana The Musical hits our stages and continues its tour at the Mayflower in Southampton until 27 Jul 19.
After jilting her fiancée Olly (Cellen Chugg Jones) at the alter Lorraine (Karina Hind) and her friends find themselves jetting off to Spain; why waste a paid for honeymoon!? Who could have envisaged that Olly and his friends also find themselves booking the same resort? A predictable story unfolds with bags of comedy, cheese, campness and well-known pop songs.
Gary (Joe McElderry) plays the camp host at Club Tropicana and needs to ensure that his staff are prepared for the visit of a hotel inspector to be in with a chance of winning ‘Hotel of the Year’. With her nose stuck in the air the inspector Christine (Emily Tierney) is going to prove hard to please. The more Gary tries the more comedy chaos ensues. Can he overcome the hurdles to win the title?
From curtain up this show is a hit with the audience. McElderry wastes no time in getting the audience on their feet to learn the Club Tropicana dance which, if they weren’t already, gets everybody in the mood for the rest of the show.
The comedy moments in this show are genius. The one-liners from Tierney and the many innuendos from the cast members will have you in stitches. Michael Gyngell, the writer of this show, has got it just right.
The stand out star of the show for me was the hotel maid/singer/dancer/cocktail maker Consuela (Kate Robbins). I could not get enough of Robbins and her sign brought tears of laughter from the whole audience. She was intoxicating to watch and from her rendition of Cilla Black, Tina Turner and Margaret Thatcher to her pottering about cleaning the hotel I just couldn’t get enough of her.
The production team are to be commended for their attention to detail for this show. The clothing and props are most definitely a throwback to the 80’s with leg warmers, shoulder pads, the large mobile phones and opal fruits to make your mouth water. With so much activity on the stage it is hard to know where to look which makes the scene changes seamless.
I would have liked to have heard more of Amelle Berrabah’s amazing voice. Playing the hotel manager, she isn’t as prominent on stage as McElderry and Robbins but she shines when with her rendition of Only You. I was also impressed with the voice of Cellen Chugg Jones.
This show is bursting with energy. The whole cast look like they are thoroughly enjoying themselves. What’s not to enjoy when the drinks are free, well just the first one, and you have McEldery sashaying around the stage with a cheeky wink here and his over the top flirtatious ways with audience and cast alike.
So if Girls Just Want To Have Fun (and men too), I’ll give you some help with Making Your Mind Up – book a seat! A pure blast from the past which will leave you singing your favourite 80’s lyrics for weeks to come this is a show not to be missed.