Theatre Review: Secrets - The Musical

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Epstein Theatre

Written By: Seán Fitzsimmons

Format: Musical
Genre: Comedy
Date: May 12 2017
Location: Epstein Theatre, Liverpool, England

Set in Liverpool in 2017, Mersey Entertainment Agency is faced with a double-edged sword. The request to organise a show for a millionaire's birthday party is as exciting a prospect, as it is fraught with danger.

As owner of the Agency, Larry (John McGrellis) continues to be at the mercy of 'Metal Mick' (Danny Taylor), and he is caught between his threats and the objections of Liz (Nicole Barber-Lane). Will he choose to yield to fear or loyalty?

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The Rocky Horror Picture Show

Image Source: Ents 24

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Format: Musical
Genre: Comedy
Date: October 18 2016
Location: Liverpool Empire Theatre, Liverpool, England

So, I walk into the theatre for the show. I get a drink to see me through the night, I go the loo to make sure I don't need to get up during the performance, and I take my seat as I see people walking past in fishnet tights ... and leopard-print Speedos ... and, in one case, a gentleman of several decades walking his presumed-wife to their seats whilst keeping her attached to a dog collar, wrapped around their wrists. (To which I remarked to my guest, "Imagine walking around Asda like that!")

Welcome to The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

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Sister Act

Image Source: ATG

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Format: Musical
Genre: Comedy
Date: October 10 2016
Location: Liverpool Empire Theatre, Liverpool, England

Based on the 1992 film, the musical version of Sister Act tells the same story as the movie, with only some minor changes at certain points. After Deloris Van Cartier (Alexandra Burke), a singer as part of an up-and-coming band, witnesses her former boyfriend and band mate Curtis (Aaron Lee Lambert) shoot a fellow band member to death in anger and frustration, Deloris confesses about the incident to the local police department. In order to protect her safety and identity, she is sent to the local church, with the idea of her simply hiding out there for a period of time. But her loud, boisterous and outspoken, yet largely positive, nature riles up Mother Superior (Karen Mann), whose quiet, conservative and traditional approach to the running of the church and the guidance of the nuns is a great contrast to the lifestyle of Deloris. Partly to protect her and partly in an attempt to try and change her ways, Mother Superior transforms Deloris into Sister Mary Clarence.

After a near-miss when Deloris/Clarence ventures to a local bar, with several nuns following her as back-up and with her arch-nemesis and co in attendance (she only avoids disaster when her identity is confused with that of a local drag queen), Mother Superior is furious, and feels that the only way to keep an eye on Deloris/Clarence is to take advantage of her musical skills and have her join the choir band with her fellow nuns. I should mention that the vocal skills of the nuns are like hearing cats screaming, or something akin to a bad X-Factor audition (sadly for the X-Factor hopefuls, the performers in this show are deliberately singing badly). That all changes when Deloris/Clarence joins them and, soon, they become a genuinely talented and exciting choir band, although Mother Superior is further ruffled by the fact that the band use not-so-religious dance moves and the use of funky instruments, which is far from the gentle, holy nature of regular choir music. Yet it brings in larger attendances for masses than ever before, so much so that they are set to perform in front of the Pope. However, Curtis and friends are edging ever closer to finding Deloris, due to her fame rising, and Mother Superior looks to seize any opportunity she can to remove Deloris/Clarence from the church, which helps to set up a climactic finale. Oh, and there's "Sweaty" Eddie (Jon Robyns), a local police officer who helps to protect Deloris, but who also has a secret to tell her, dating back to their days together in college.

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Annie

Image Source: Annie

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Format: Comedy
Genre: Musical
Date: March 8 2016
Location: Liverpool Empire Theatre

Although the young children who will want to see Annie on stage will have the 2014 movie in mind, Annie itself was actually originally a Broadway musical, first performed in 1977. And the recent film adaptation is actually the third movie to focus on Annie's story: the original movie (often considered to be the best of the trilogy, if you can call it that) was released in 1982, followed by a 1999 flick produced for television by Disney, and finally the aforementioned remake from 2014.

Regardless of where you first heard about Annie, though, the main story remains very similar to that of its predecessors. It's New York City just before Christmas 1932 and Annie (Anya Evans), one of eight orphans living in Miss Hannigan's Municipal Girls Orphanage, dreams about one day leaving to find her true parents, especially since Hannigan (Lesley Joseph) treats the children terribly by forcing them to constantly work, particularly through sewing. Annie makes a failed escape attempt and Hannigan thinks that Annie is once again under her control, until a lady named Grace Farrell (Holly Dale Spencer) pops around. It turns around that the famous billionaire Mr. Warbucks (Alex Bourne) is looking to bring an orphan to live in his mansion over the winter holidays, and given the description that Grace provides, Annie is the perfect choice, much to Hannigan's chagrin.

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Avenue Q

Image Source: Avenue Q

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Format: Musical
Genre: Comedy
Date: February 22 2016
Location: Liverpool Empire Theatre

So, a friend asked me how the latest show to hit the Liverpool Empire was, and to summarise it in a few words, I replied: "Think of Sesame Street ... with sex."

Welcome to Avenue Q, a show which both parodies and pays homage to Sesame Street, a classic children's favourite for decades now. Some of the puppets bear a strong resemblance to Sesame characters, either from their physical appearance or from their voice. But whereas Sesame Street aims to educate young children on spelling and word definitions and the like, Avenue Q aims to emphasise the importance of some, well, different lessons of life.

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Priscilla: Queen Of The Desert

Image Source: Liverpool Echo

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Format: Musical
Genre: Comedy
Date: January 25 2016
Location: Liverpool Empire Theatre

Sometimes, you will go to a number of theatre shows and find that some productions share similar traits, whether it be in the storyline or the style of humour used or even with key events within the plot. Priscilla: Queen Of The Desert is not one of those shows; this is a very unique production with outlandish characters and various, if at times confusing, storylines. However, this does not detract from one's enjoyment of the show.

Priscilla sees three drag queen performers travelling together on a bus across Australia. Along the way, they exchange risqué jokes aplenty; engage in situations involving new flings and unwanted strangers; provide love life revelations and receive threats about their own sexual persuasions; and perform musical numbers ranging from soft melodies to extravagant dance displays.

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Last Night A DJ Saved My Life

David Hasselhoff

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Format: Musical
Genre: Comedy
Date: January 19 2016
Location: Liverpool Empire Theatre

Sun, sea, sand and sex ... and The Hoff - what more could you want off a holiday-themed show?

Yes, The Hoff himself, David Hasselhoff, was a leading cast member in the show Last Night A DJ Saved My Life, a comedy musical which detailed the trials and tribulations off a teenage girl named Penny (Stephanie Webber), who is looking to connect more with her father Ross (played by Hoff) whilst also taking the first big steps in learning about love, all amidst an eventful couple of days in Ibiza, and with dad's workplace Club Nirvana acting as a setting for many of the show's key events.

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Shrek: The Musical

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Format: Musical
Genre: Comedy
Date: November 26 2015
Location: Liverpool Empire Theatre

The latest big-budget production to hit the Liverpool Empire stage, in this case produced by Dreamworks, Shrek: The Musical tells the story of Shrek (played by Dean Chisnall), a large ogre, a friendly ogre, but one whose visual appearance and intimidating size makes him horrifying to many who encounter him. Having been abandoned at the age of seven, and eventually finding his home in a swamp, one day he was startled to learn that his home had been taken over by a group of fairy-tale characters, including Pinocchio, the Gingerbread Man (who is presented on a board), the Three Bears and the Three Little Pigs, by orders of Lord Farquaad (Gerard Casey). As Shrek makes it a personal mission to meet Farquaad and reclaim his home, along the way he meets Donkey (Idriss Kargbo), who despite his overly-excitable nature and occasional annoying behaviour, becomes a true friend to Shrek, and joins him for the journey.

When they meet Farquaad, though, they are informed that to get back his home, Shrek must complete a separate quest; that being, to rescue Princess Fiona (Bronté Barbé) from being trapped in a castle by a dragon. As Shrek makes his way to the castle, Donkey is held captive by the dragon, and we see Fiona grow up as she wishes to one day be rescued by her Prince Charming. When the moment finally comes, though, her joy at being set free is offset by her dismay from her rescuer being the big ogre that is Shrek. In the meantime, Donkey is saved from the dragon, although there appears to be something of a bond formed which has relevance later in the story.

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Hairspray

Image Source: Hairspray

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Format: Musical
Genre: Comedy
Date: October 12 2015
Location: Liverpool Empire Theatre

Hairspray recently made an eagerly-anticipated return to Liverpool, once again emanating from the Liverpool Empire Theatre. The show is all about having fun and tackling important issues in a manner that brings a smile to one's face and with a flair that ensures you will be cheering on the lead characters as they strive to achieve their goals. The plot has multiple layers, but they all come together nicely and, through their development and resolution, combine to tell a story which is both eye-catching and entertaining, making for a very enjoyable night at the theatre.

The lead character, Tracy Turnblad (Freya Sutton), is a slightly overweight teenage girl living in Baltimore who, along with her friend Penny (Monique Young), loves to watch the locally-based TV programme The Corny Collins Show. This is to the disapproval of her mother Edna (played by Tony Maudsley; you can tell it's a male playing the somewhat masculine female, but I didn't realise till midway through that it was Tony, which is a positive I suppose!), with her father Wilbur (Peter Duncan) not minding as his priority is keeping his joke shop in business. One day, the 1960s-based show that blends intricate dancing with feel-good singing reveals that the programme will soon be looking for a new dancer, and that interested parties should audition.

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