Royal and Derngate Theatre Northampton – until 14 September 2024
Review by Amanda Allen
5*****
Its always with some trepidation that you go to see a new show based on an all-time favourite, especially if that show is a musical and the original was a brilliant film that made a star or its leading lady. However I was very pleasantly surprised with how brilliantly Pretty Woman has been adapted to the stage musical format. The story line followed the film really well, with many of the famous lines and scenes transferring directly on to the stage. With the iconic settings of Hollywood boulevard, Beverly Wiltshire Hotel and Rodeo drive, we were transported back to 1980’s Los Angeles to meet Vivien Ward (Played by Amber Davies) her best friend Kit De Luca (Natalie Paris) and the Millionaire love interest Edward Lewis (Oliver Savile) All 3 parts portrayed excellently by the actors. The transformation of Vivien from Hooker to lady was wonderfully portrayed through the costumes, attitude and acting skills of Amber Davies. A special mention must go to Ore Oduba who played many roles, Happy man / Mr Thompson / The Band conductor. We all knew he could dance after his strictly performance, but I was surprised how well he could act and sing, carrying the audience along with him with a wink and a well-timed glance. He almost stole the show. His versatility working a stage, and his excellent comic timing worked really well with the story line and portrayal of the characters. I loved the strictly score cards utilised in one dance scene giving him all 10’s, very funny.
For me the standout performance was Noah Harrison who played the bellhop, Giulio at the Beverly Wiltshire Hotel. His depiction of the slightly goofy, kind, unimportant lift boy was excellent. The whole audience warmed to his character, realising that he was just a normal good guy and on Vivians side. It also helped that he looked as if he was having a great time. It was good to see the vocal talents of Lila Falce-Bass as Violetta / Big lady being put to good use. Her operatic renditions were amazing and really made the hair on the back of your neck stand on end
A special mention must go to the costume and set designers. With numerous outfit changes to accommodate, not to mention the many wigs used in the show, they did an amazing job. I especially liked Guilio using a wig as a polishing cloth to try and disguise the fact that Edward didn’t want his smarmy lawyer Philip Stuckey (Ben Darcy) to know Vivien was in his room! Hilarious comic timing from Giulio. The sets easily transported us from Downtown Hollywood to Hotel bedroom, Opera house, restaurant, polo field and back again seamlessly due to excellent design and intelligent use of stage crew.
A favourite part for me was the mention of the polka dot dress, but here it was Blue and this was excellently pointed out in the song. Vivien and Edward sang really well together, their voices complementing each other effortlessly. A few of the songs were a bit longer than needed and seemed like a bit to much padding but overall it was an excellent portrayal of a much loved story, Cinderella for the 1980’s. Very much a woman’s story, if you liked the film, go and see it, I loved it!