Thinking he will never have another success after the hugely popular Pagliacci, Ruggero Leoncavallo (Alasdair Buchan) has great plans to write an opera based on Scènes de la vie de bohème by Henri Murger. He decides to tell his caring friend Giacomo Puccini (Sebastien Torkia) about his new idea only to learn that he too has read the same book and is also thinking about writing an opera called La bohème. What are the chances? Puccini of course denies being so devious, but this is a feud that will take them all the way to Vienna, by way of Venice, Gustav Mahler, and the rollercoaster of emotions that is creative output.
In That Bastard, Puccini!, the two composers race to finish their operas, while Leoncavallo’s long suffering wife Berthe (Lisa-Anne Wood) acts as umpire, soloist, and at times Puccini’s even more long suffering wife Elvira, and at one point the great Gustav Mahler. James Inverne’s splendidly madcap play about musical rivalry is peppered with clever research and modern parlance, creating a world that is easy to inhabit as an audience member. All three members of the cast are excellent, nimbly navigating the plot and the humour of which there is much. Sebastien Torkia is slick and hits every hilarious beat with precision as the suave Puccini, and Alasdair Buchan as the downcast and downtrodden Leoncavallo is quick to win sympathy with the audience as he constantly tries to catch up with Puccini who seems to be always one step ahead (and not afraid to gloat about it). Lisa-Anne Wood beautifully brings the music to life as she sings arias next to the piano, at one point being pulled this way and that in a composer tug of war.
Daniel Slater’s production is buoyant and pacey and the quieter more poignant moments are handled with a delicate touch. The set by Carly Brownbridge is a simple parlour with large scale musical notation adorning the floor, and clever concealed cupboards in the wooden panelling contain different props each time they are opened. The tables, chairs, and chaise longue transform into gondolas, cafes, and places for an onlooker to perch.
As someone who has been opera adjacent for most of their life, That Bastard, Puccini! is a fun and informative examination of two composing giants fighting for their moment in the spotlight, and I think we all know who won this particular battle. I did however listen to Pagliacci on my bike ride home, so I think Leoncavallo can count that as a win.
Nottingham Theatre Royal – until Saturday 2 August 2025
Reviewed by Louise Ford
5*****
It’s Tina Time!
The production is based on Tina Turner’s best-selling memoir, I Tina, written by Katori Hall with Frank Ketelaar and Kees Prins. They were also involved in adapting the book for the stage. The original show premiered in the West End, seven years before transferring to Broadway. The Executive Producers are Tina Turner and Erwin Bach. The show’s Director is Phyllida Lloyd.
The show cleverly interweaves 23 of Tina’s songs to tell the story of her life. Tina isn’t portrayed as a victim but rather shows her drive and tenacity to overcome life’s obstacles to become the star that she always dreamed of becoming. Tina was finally inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2021 as a solo artist.
The story starts with a silhouette of Tina meditating before a black out screen, which transforms into her childhood town in Tennessee. Tina was born in the late 1930s, Anna Mae Bullock, in a poor cotton-picking community. Her father is a cut above the pickers as he is both an overseer and a Baptist Pastor at the local church. Anna Mae is shown out singing and outperforming the other members of the congregation. Anna Mae Bullock is played as a child by Sophia St Louis, she has a great stage presence and a fine pair of lungs. Anna Mae’s sister Alline is played by Shaniyah Abrahams as a child, the bond between the two siblings is touching and lasts throughout their lifetime. Anna Mae’s family life is hard and difficult to watch. Her mother, Zelma, is played by Letitia Hector and her father, Richard, by Rushand Chambers.
When Anna Mae moves to St Louis at the age of 16, to live with her glamorous mother and fun-loving sister, she transforms from the dowdy country cousin to the sophisticated city dweller. The adult Anna Mae is brilliantly played by Jochebel Ohene . Whilst Alline is played by Loren Anderson as an adult.
It is Anna Mae’s spectacular singing voice which brings her to the attention of Ike Turner, the leader of the Kings of Rhythm band. The role of Ike is played by David King-Yombo. Ike is initially seen as a charismatic musical genius before descending into a controlling and abusive womaniser. His descendant is exacerbated by his drinking and drug taking. It’s a tricky role to play, but we do get some understanding of his own troubled upbringing and the machismo of the time.
The first half of the show is a tough watch, whilst there are some lighter moments, it doesn’t shy away from the issues faced by people of colour and particularly women growing up in America in the 1950s and 1960s.
The second half is more upbeat and charts Tina’s divorce from Ike and her launching her solo career. Solo success did not come easily for her. We see Tina performing in Las Vegas and struggling to keep her home and family together. She is supported through this by her sister.
Tina’s breakthrough came rather unexpectedly in Europe, in an unlikely collaboration with Heaven 17 and producer Phil Spectre. And the rest is history. With a dynamic stage presence, the shortest skirts(so that her legs are free), the longest legs in show business, and her blonde shaggy hair, Tina Turner burst back on the world’s music stage. Her powerful and uplifting voice delivers the iconic 1984 Private Dancer album.
The story comes back full circle to the opening scene where Tina is meditating before her triumphant concert. The stage opens up, and we are in the audience of one of the great comeback concerts. The audience is treated to a full Tina private concert, which has the audience on their feet clapping and singing away, celebrating Tina’s success.
The production is slick and energetic. The use of lighting and projection instead of scenery enhances the production.
The award-winning star of the BBC’s Boiling Point Vinette Robinson and the Olivier Award-winning Luke Treadaway will play Emilia and Cassio in the highly anticipated new West End production of Shakespeare’s OTHELLO which begins performances at the Theatre Royal Haymarket on 23 October 2025.
They join the previously announced David Harewood as Othello, Toby Jones as Iago and Caitlin FitzGerald as Desdemona.
Vinette Robinson said: ‘I’m absolutely delighted to be making my West End debut in this new production of Shakespeare’s Othello, and I am very much looking forward to exploring the play with this incredible cast and wonderful creative team.’
Luke Treadaway said: ‘I am beyond excited to be starting rehearsals for Othello – a play I’ve never seen before but one that is so ingrained in our theatrical culture. It will fascinating to be a part of it and I can’t wait to get started in September.’
The explosive new production is directed by Tony Award-winner Tom Morris (War Horse) with music by PJ Harvey. This epic story of manipulation, jealousy and toxic masculinity explores the darker side of power, rage and desire.
Performances begin at Theatre Royal Haymarket, London’s West End venue that specialises in short-run, star-led high quality productions from 23 October 2025 until 17 January 2026.
This is the first of a series of contemporary Shakespeare productions created by Tom Morris for Chris Harper Productions to be staged in the West End over the next five years.
Joining Tom Morris and PJ Harvey on the creative team are Ti Green (Designer), Jon Nicholls (Sound Design and Additional Music), Richard Howell (Lighting Design), Anna Cooper CDG (Casting), Dominic Skinner (Make-up Design), Suzanne Scotcher (Hair & Wigs Design), Katie Henry (Associate Director), Bethan James (Assistant Director), Sabia Smith (Costume Supervisor), Mariama Bojang (Assistant Costume Designer), Sheena Linden (Company Manager), Damian Partington (Production Manager) and Samantha Adams (Dramatherapist).
Othello is produced by Chris Harper Productions with Len Blavatnik & Danny Cohen for Access Entertainment. Further casting for the production will be announced at a later date.
Mark Hadfield will star as Agatha Christie’s famous Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, in Lucy Bailey’s new production of the UK & Ireland Tour of DEATH ON THE NILE. Fiery Angel will bring Ken Ludwig’s adaptation of the Agatha Christie classic to the stage, following sell-out tours of And Then There Were None and Murder on the Orient Express. Death on the Nile reunites writer Ken Ludwig, director Lucy Bailey(Witness for the Prosecution)and producers Fiery Angel in association with Agatha Christie Limited for the European premiere of a new adaptation of the globally celebrated Agatha Christie story on a nationwide tour.
The UK & Ireland Tour will open on 26 September at the Lowry in Salford, with a national press night on Thursday 9 October at Richmond Theatre. More dates have been added to the tour: Chichester Festival Theatre, Cheltenham Everyman Theatre, Malvern Festival Theatre, Aberdeen’s His Majesty’s Theatre, Glasgow Theatre Royal, York Grand Opera House, Sheffield Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh Festival Theatre, Brighton Theatre Royal, The Alexandra Birmingham, Nottingham Theatre Royal, Dublin’s Gaiety Theatre, Belfast Grand Opera House, Norwich Theatre Royal, Cambridge Arts Theatre, finishing on 23 May 2026 at Plymouth Theatre Royal.
Mark Hadfield said of taking on the role of Poirot, “I am delighted and excited to be playing the iconic role of Hercule Poirot in the forthcoming production of Agatha Christie’s Death on the Nile, directed by Lucy Bailey and produced by Fiery Angel. I’m also thrilled that this production, adapted by Ken Ludwig, will be touring the UK & Ireland, and have no doubt that it will be enjoyed by both those who already admire Christie’s genius and those yet to discover it.”
Mark Hadfield’s film credits include Belfast, Into the Woods, Hamlet and Frankenstein. His many TV credits include Outlander, Maigret, Trollied, Wallander, Doc Martin, People Like Us, Cracker, The All New Alexei Sayle Show and The Buddha of Suburbia. Mark’s most recent theatre credits include Dr Strangelove (West End), Accidental Death of an Anarchist (West End), Cymbeline and Tamburlaine for the RSC, Road (Royal Court), The Libertine (Bath and West End) and Richard III (Almeida).
On board a luxurious cruise under the heat of the Egyptian sun, a couple’s idyllic honeymoon is cut short by a brutal murder. As secrets that have been buried in the sands of time finally resurface, can the world-famous detective, Hercule Poirot, untangle the web of lies and solve another crime?
Further casting is to be announced.
DEATH ON THE NILE will be directed by Lucy Bailey and designed by Mike Britton, with lighting design by Oliver Fenwick, sound design by Mic Pool and movement direction by Liam Steele. Lucy Waterhouse will be associate director and Helena Palmer casting director.
Agatha Christie Limited (ACL) has been managing the literary and media rights to Agatha Christie’s works around the world since 1955. Collaborating with the very best talents in film, television, publishing, stage and on digital platforms, ACL ensures that Christie’s work continues to reach new audiences in innovative ways and to the highest standard.
The company is managed by Christie’s great grandson James Prichard.
Current ACL theatre productions include Witness for the Prosecution at London County Hall and a hugely successful UK tour of Murder on the Orient Express in collaboration with Fiery Angel.
FIERY ANGEL
Headed by Edward Snape and Marilyn Eardley, Fiery Angel is an award-winning international production company based in London’s West End.
Recent productions include: Till the Stars Come Down (West End), War Horse (UK Tour), The Duchess (West End), King Lear (West End and The Shed, New York), Murder on the Orient Express (UK and Ireland Tour), Kathy and Stella Solve A Murder! (West End and UK Tour), The 39 Steps (West End, UK Tour), And Then There Were None (UK, Ireland and China Tour), The Good Life (UK Tour), Hairspray (West End), Touching the Void (West End), The Son (West End), The Night of the Iguana (West End), Fleabag (West End), Home, I’m Darling (West End and UK Tour), Long Day’s Journey into Night (West End, New York and Los Angeles), Mary Stuart (West End and UK Tour), Mel Brooks’s Young Frankenstein (West End), Love From A Stranger (UK Tour), Kenneth Branagh Theatre Company (The Winter’s Tale, All On Her Own/Harlequinade, Red Velvet, The Painkiller, Romeo and Juliet, The Entertainer in the West End), Ben Hur (Tricycle Theatre), The 39 Steps (9 years in the West End, 3 UK Tours, 3 years on Broadway and presented in over 40 territories worldwide including Olivier, Tony and Moliere Award wins), To Kill a Mockingbird (Barbican Theatre and UK Tour), The Scottsboro Boys (West End), The Ladykillers (West End and UK Tour), Ghost Stories (West End), Dial M for Murder (UK Tour). Fiery Angel has acted as a co-producer alongside The National Theatre on its West End productions of Nine Night, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and The Lehman Trilogy.
As part of Fiery Angel Entertainment: Rob Brydon (Lyceum Theatre, UK Tour), Jon Culshaw (UK Tour), Amy & Carlos: Reborn (UK Tour), Everybody Dance with Claire Richards (London Palladium, UK Tour), Legends: The Divas (UK Tour), Dolly Parton’s Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol (Queen Elizabeth Hall), Tubular Bells (Royal Festival Hall), Circus 1903 (Royal Festival Hall, Eventim Apollo), Guys and Dolls (Royal Albert Hall), Barry Humphries’ Weimar Cabaret (Barbican Theatre) and Our Finest Hour (UK Tour).
As part of The Children’s Theatre Partnership: Pig Heart Boy (UK Tour), The Boy at the Back of the Class (UK Tour), Unexpected Twist (UK Tour), Animal Farm (UK Tour), Holes (UK Tour), The Jungle Book (UK Tour), Running Wild (UK Tour), The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (UK Tour), Goodnight Mister Tom (West End and 3 UK Tours, Olivier Award-winner) and Swallows and Amazons (West End and UK Tour).
As part of Fierylight Productions: Smartest Giant in Town (UK Tour and West End), Peppa Pig Live! (West End, UK Tour, US Tour and Australian Tour), Ben & Holly’s Little Kingdom (UK Tour) and Octonauts & The Deep Sea Volcano Adventure (UK Tour and US Tour).
I’ve seen The Rocky Horror Show a lot (since before their 21st birthday and they are now on their 51st year!) so I did wonder if I would enjoy watching a completely new cast and the answer is yes, I absolutely did!
From the first moment when the usherette (Natasha Hoeberigs) introduces the show this fabulous cast held the audience in the palm of their very talented hands!
This is the story of Brad (Alex Hetherington) and Janet (Lauren Chia) two strait-laced kids, who on the way back from a wedding, get a flat tyre and have to go and ask for help at spooky house they have just passed. They are greeted by manservant Riff Raff (Job Greuter) who along with Magenta (Natasha Hoeberigs) and Columbia (Jayme-Lee Zanoncelli) introduce Brad and Janet into the warped world of the owner of the house Frank N Furter (Adam Strong). There are all sorts of things going on in the house, but what happened to Eddie and who is Dr Scott? (both played by Edward Bullingham) and why did Frank make Rocky (Morgan Jackson)?
Adam Strong was an outstanding Frank N Furter, brilliant vocals and when he sang, I’m Going Home you could have heard a pin drop in the theatre. So, so good!
The band, led by Musical Director Josh Sood, were played all the very recognisable tunes from Sweet Transvestite, Time Warp and I’m Going Home and many more.
The narrator (Nathan Caton) helps the story move along, batting back the audience comments with style, he was very funny. The ensemble was, as always, amazing!
The Rocky Horror Show is fast paced, hilarious, very cheeky and definitely not for the fainthearted! If you want to have a brilliant night out, don’t miss this excellent show, go early and see all the people in costumes playing homage to their favourite characters.
This is a show not to be missed, whether it’s your first time of watching or you’re a seasoned Rocky Horror audience member you won’t be disappointed. And me? Well, I’m back on Saturday night for the last performance because seeing it once isn’t enough!!
Those of us old enough to remember Kate Bush bursting onto our screens in 1978 with the now iconic ‘Wuthering Heights’ will recall how very striking everything about it was; the lyrics, the theme, the theatrical performance was all a world away from the prog rockers and disco divas we were accustomed to seeing top the charts. It was strange and wonderful, and Bush herself was enigmatic and did not linger in the public eye. Despite a career that spans five decades, Bush’s live performances have been extremely rare, leaving a hunger that fans have been eager to satiate.
Enter stage left An Evening Without Kate Bush, performed by Sarah-Louise Young (Julie Madly Deeply, Fascinating Aïda, Cabaret Whore) and created with Russell Lucas (Third Class: A Titanic Story, The Fat Man’s Wife, The Understudy), respectively. Although the show was conceived to provide Bush fans with an opportunity to enjoy live renditions of her work, this is by no means a mere tribute act. Instead it is a delightfully silly communal celebration of all things Bush – the myth and the music. Young’s boundless energy fills the room, drawing in one and all, whether lifelong Bush fans, the newly converted, or just casual listeners.
Having toured internationally since 2019, this award-winning show has itself become something of a cult classic, approved and followed by the ‘Fish People’, as Bush fans are known. The hour and a half of stage time is packed full of Bush trivia, audience participation, creative costume changes, artistic analysis, and, of course, performances of both popular favourites and rare bootlegs. It is very much a mutual experience; Young leads and the audience willingly follows. Her enthusiasm for the role and performance is contagious, resulting in not just a highly entertaining evening, but also the collective pulse of kinetic shared enjoyment.
Ultimately, it is a visceral demonstration of the unifying power of music; whether your particular flavour is the throbbing pace of Black Sabbath or the eclectic creations of a unique artist such as Kate Bush, music brings humans together like nothing else. Frankly, after seeing this, I’m surprised there aren’t more such shows. Young and Lucas have tapped into something special that’s as much fun as dancing on your kitchen floor with your best friend. I don’t know how they did it, but I’m glad they did.
Catch this performance on its current UK tour until November.
Transferring to the West End after a sell-out run at the National last year, Beth Steel’s brilliant portrayal of family and culture clashes loses none of its bite and soul.
Set in a Nottinghamshire town that was once a mining community but now relies on a huge warehouse for jobs, Steel addresses political issues and prejudices with a deft touch as these instantly recognisable and relatable characters interact. It’s the day of Sylvia (Sinéad Matthews) and Marek’s (Julian Kostov) wedding, and her family are preparing for the big bash. Rumblings of resentments old and new are ever-present amongst the usual pre-wedding nervousness and hilarity between Sylvia and her two sisters.
The action then skips to the reception – where Aunty Carol’s (Dorothy Atkinson) outrage at not being on the top table is the least of the drama, as the drink flows and the casual xenophobic barbed comments that Sylvia lets pass begin to rile Marek. Marek is Polish, and most of the warehouse and manual workers in the town are also Polish, while Hazel’s (Lucy Black) husband has been let go and can’t find a job. Marek’s descriptions of the horrible jobs he’s had to earn enough to start his own business don’t go down well with Hazel and his offer of a job to John is, to her, the final insult. The brilliant line from Marek that she can be a victim or superior, not both sums up the frustration of facing this prejudice on a daily basis.
As well as the politics of post-industrialisation and immigration, Steel also reminds us of the scars from the past – Sylvia’s father and uncle haven’t spoken for decades – and the effects of secrets and lies on the present as teenager Leane (Ruby Thompson) unthinkingly punishes herself and her family, leading to a devastating final scene when truths are finally shared. The oh so familiar drunken shenanigans at the wedding are immediately relatable – it’s England, so rain obviously forces a change of plans. Skilfully directed by Bijan Sheibani, the onstage seating helps with the intimacy of the play – making the audience feel that we are guests at the wedding, and the faux pas, accusations and revelations even more shocking.
The incredible cast are utterly believable as the fractured family. Lucy Black is bristling with anger, fear and frustration as Hazel – just doing the right thing and holding everything together for the family. Aisling Loftus is phenomenal as Maggie, the black sheep of the family, returning after a mysterious disappearance, burning with love for her sisters but carrying a huge amount of guilt and pain. Sinéad Matthews is wonderful as the sweet and pliant Sylvia, and Dorothy Atkinson steals the show as mad Aunty Carol – there’s one in every family! – brilliantly showing more glimpses of her lonely soul as she gets more and more drunk and more and more outrageous.
Beth Steel’s modern masterpiece is hilarious and heartbreaking: beautifully paced as emotions heighten and staged with flair. Political and personal, making you gasp in horror and cry with laughter, this is a wedding you shouldn’t miss.
Steven (Ed Coleman) is working successfully in theatre, thinking that he is managing his day drinking and fooling everybody around him, until eventually he can’t. Sean Daniels’ autobiographical play about alcoholism is hard hitting and very funny – Daniels states that he wants to destroy shame through comedy – as Steven relates the events of his life.
From growing up in a Mormon family and his first drink, through teenage drunken scrapes that he just about got away with, through college keggers to landing his job, Steven’s model of how to manage his drinking and his work seemed to have been perfected. He needs a drink to be social, to be confident, to have sex – he doesn’t understand how people can put themselves out there without the help of alcohol. Colleagues and friends who know his addiction cover for him as he promises to get help, but he keeps hitting a wall at 70 days and eventually returns to AA for yet another white chip – acknowledging a commitment to start or renew a commitment to sobriety.
Car crashes, blackouts, lost days and opportunities are all portrayed with dark humour and a matter-of-factness that makes the horror of what is happening even worse. Steven’s relationships with friends and family are all thrown away, and his sense of loss is palpable, but only increases his need to drink. As he finally hits rock bottom the sigh when the audience realise who he reaches out to is wonderful to hear – Daniel’s writing, even taking us at such breakneck speed through Steven’s life, has created a beautifully broken character that we want to see heal. When the science of addiction is actually explained to him Steven takes his first real steps towards recovery.
Ed Coleman is dynamic and charismatic as Steven, plumbing the depths and capturing the euphoria of the character brilliantly. Mara Allen and Ashlee Irish play multiple people in Steven’s life, and the voices in his head, with great skill and characterisation.
Slickly directed by Matt Ryan, this stripped back production directs all focus on the actors – and the stage manager (Rosie Morgan), sitting onstage and hitting or missing cues depending on Steven’s state of mind. Jamie Platt’s lighting and Max Pappenheim’s sound design mark Steven’s spirals brilliantly. Lee Newby’s set design has stacks of chairs are lined up against the wall – perhaps symbolising the number of futile meetings that Steven has attended – as Mara Allen and Ashlee Irish set up circles of chairs throughout the play.
Sean Daniels’ play is remarkably frank and funny. A sharp and clever account of alcoholism that will make you laugh and think. A must-see production.
BARD IN THE BOTANICS FESTIVAL, GLASGOW – UNTIL 2 AUGUST 2025
REVIEWED BY RACHEL FARRIER
5*****
Bard in the Botanics is a Glasgow institution, a month long festival of theatre in Glasgow’s beautiful botanic gardens, with at least two Shakespeare plays each year. A tree-framed stage was the perfect setting for this year’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. As the long light of a Scottish evening slowly faded, the fairy-light laden staged created an intimate and magical space for a glorious performance. Benjamin Keachie’s Puck welcomed us in with the perfect blend of mischief and wit as he snuck and leapt his way amongst the audience throughout (nabbing snacks from audience members along the way). His costume, and those of all the fairy characters, are beautifully reflective of the natural surroundings.
The quartet of thwarted and unrequited lovers bring a tonne of youthful energy to their characters and Star Penders debut as a lovelorn and then suitably outraged Helena was a stand-out performance; she brought a hilarious Scottish lassie vibe to the role.
Gordon Barr’s production sparkles with a nicely local take on Shakespeare’s classic and he shakes things up in a number of ways, including having Oberon fall in love/lust with Bottom, rather than Titania. James Boal as Oberon and Alan Steele at Bottom are a hilariously over the top pairing. Both actors are Bard in the Botanics regulars and Alan Steele, as usual, stole the show on a number of occasions with his ridiculous, pompous Bottom – I was not the only audience member weeping with laughter at his consideration and then sudden acceptance of Oberon’s enthusiastic advances.
I have often felt that the play-within-a-play of Pyramus and Thisbe towards the end can be slightly tedious, but it was anything but that in this version; Hana Nadera’s performance of Robin Starvelings’s ‘Wall’ will not be forgotten for some time, and I especially enjoyed Noëlle Paterson’s take on the unwilling Francis Flute, in particular their irritable representation of the moon.
Whilst Carys Hobbs’ set is compact and beautifully natural, the use of the surrounding gardens are used to wonderful effect, especially during the scenes that are in the fairy-realm. As night falls, it felt as if the audience had merged to become part of this sparkling, magical production. There are only a handful of performances left, but get yourself a ticket if you can for an absolute midsummer treat, and check out the company’s other plays in the coming weeks.
The Addams Family Musical embarks on a mini UK tour, with its first stop being Birmingham Hippodrome. Based on the 1938 comic strip by Charles Addams, it tells the story of a macabre American family. Although there have been numerous film and TV reboots, this show marked the first time it was turned into a musical. The show first opened on Broadway in April 2010, with music and lyrics by Andrew Lippa and book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice. This production is directed by Matthew White.
From the moment the audience was seated, we were waiting to hear the iconic clicks of the classic theme tune. When the moment finally arrived, the infamous disembodied hand ‘Thing’ appeared, and everybody joined in and clicked to the beat. We meet the entire Addams clan in a graveyard for their annual gathering of “The living, dead and undecided”. Gomez (Ricardo Afonso) and Morticia (Alexandra Burke) introduce us to the family with the hilarious ‘When You’re An Addams’, complete with a fun dance section. Uncle Fester (Clive Rowe) tells us that Wednesday (Lauren Jones) has fallen in love with a ‘normal’ boy, Lucas (Jacob Fowler) and he stops the Ancestors from returning to their graves, so they can help him at the dinner party that Wednesday has planned with Jacob’s parents, Mal Beineke (Dale Ripley) and Alice Beineke (Kara Lane). Wednesday soon confesses to Gomez that she intends to marry Lucas, but Gomez becomes caught in a web of lies when Wednesday insists that he doesn’t tell Morticia. Pugsley (Nicholas McLean), the youngest Addams child, is concerned that he will lose his beloved sister and, hoping to break up the couple, steals an Acrimonium serum from Grandma (played with exceptionally dark glee by Lesley Joseph). Unfortunately, he ends up giving the potion to Alice, who declares the truth about her loveless marriage to Mal, in the showstopping song ‘Waiting’, where Kara Lane showcases her amazing vocals as the repressed Alice.
The Addams Family isn’t complete without Lurch (Dickon Gough), the towering, monosyllabic Butler. Gough had the audience in stitches from his first grunt! His exaggerated slow steps and movement around the stage just added to the comedy. Although Gough is a man of few words in the show, he became one of my favourite characters to watch, even when he was just in the background. The whole cast works so well together. The chemistry between Ricardo Afonso and Alexandra Burke is sizzling. Lauren Jones and Jacob Fowler are excellent at portraying the slightly awkward, but touching connection between Wednesday and Lucas. Clive Rowe gives an outstanding performance as Uncle Fester, especially during his heartfelt ballad to his beloved moon.
The haunted mansion set design by Diego Pitarch combined with lighting by Ben Cracknell was deliciously Gothic and atmospheric. The choreography by Alistair David was always tight and precise, especially during Gomez and Morticia’s exquisite tango. The music from the live orchestra produced a beautiful score, with songs I am sure I will have stuck in my head for days to come!
There are a few moments where the jokes are a little risqué, but I think most of these will go over the heads of any children watching the show. During this performance, an audience disruption occurred during the second act, Ricardo Afonso and Lauren Jones, who were onstage at the time, and the Hippodrome team handled the situation professionally and restarted the scene as soon as possible. Overall, this fun-filled, laugh-out-loud production is enjoyable for the whole family this summer.
– The UK tour continues onto Leicester, Salford, Canterbury and Blackpool.
