Musical
Jesus Christ Superstar
Palace TheatreJesus Christ Superstar is arguable the original rock musical. Telling the story of the final days of Jesus, the sung through musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice hasn’t toured for a number of years, but seems to go through a revival every decade. This revival was directed by Timothy Sheader in his capacity as Artistic Director of Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre where this production originated, and where it won an Olivier Award for Best Musical Revival in 2017.
42nd Street
Liverpool EmpireTapping it’s way into Liverpool for a limited time, the UK and Ireland tour of 42nd Street brought Depression-era Broadway glamour in a way that only this classical musical within a musical can. Based on a 1933 film, which itself is based on an earlier novel, 42nd Street as a stage show originated in the 1980’s and features well-known musical numbers such as We’re In The Money, Keep Young And Beautiful, and the eponymous 42nd Street.
Alice in Wonderland
Liverpool PlayhouseBased on Lewis Carroll’s classic novel, this modern retelling of Alice in Wonderland is a fantastic musical romp across different genres to produce a heartfelt, family-friendly musical, with just a hint of panto. In this production, Wonderland is a broken stereo. A mix tape produced by Alice’s (Paislie Reid) recently deceased Father has become stuck in the stereo, but luckily Alice is able to fix anything, so she quickly gets to work repairing the stereo.
Heathers The Musical
Liverpool EmpireHeathers is not your standard high school musical. Based on the 1989 film which was intended to be an anti-John Hughes portrayal of teen life, the musical version of Heathers retains all the dark comedy that makes the original film a cult classic, whilst mixing in catchy group numbers and hard hitting solo pieces. The plot of Heathers is in someways what you would expect from a high school based musical; there’s a clique of girls all named Heather who rule the school, and the nerdy Veronica Sawyer wants to fit in with the popular girls.
Showstopper! The Improvised Musical
The LowryMost musical theatre writers spend years perfecting their work, testing out with audiences, and undoubtedly scrapping a fair few drafts along the way. Showstopper The Improvised Musical does away with all that, and instead produces a brand new musical at every performance using suggestions from the audience. They’re not just good at this, they’re Olivier award-winning good, so when we saw that they were performing at The Lowry there was no question that we had to go.
Six
Liverpool PlayhouseStarting life as a student show at the Edinburgh Fringe, Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss have created a cultural phenomenon that does for Tudor history what Hamilton has done for American history. Detailing - in a loose sense - how history has reduced the six wives of Henry VIII to a rhyme, Six delves into the life of each wife in a Horrible Histories meets The X Factor sassy pop-rock concert.