MUSICAL THEATRE REVIEW - THE PARENT AGENCY - THE MUSICAL STORYHOUSE CHESTER

 This production marks the tenth anniversary of David Baddiel’s best-selling children’s book, The Parent Agency, upon which the show is based.  The book has sold over 355,000 copies worldwide and been translated into 30 languages. Originally released in 2014, The Parent Agency went on to win the Laugh Out Loud Award.

 The musical is produced by John Berry and Anthony Lilley of Scenario Two and Suzie Henderson and Helen Redcliffe of Storyhouse.  It has lyrics by Baddiel and music and additional lyrics by Dan Gillespie Sells (lead singer and songwriter of band, The Feeling); it is directed by Tim Jackson. Baddiel is the narrator and incites humour and originality to the script.

 It was a full house with a mixed audience of youngsters, teenagers, parents and older adults who gave the cast a warm welcome with a loud cheer as the show started.

 
Max Bispham, (Barry), won over hearts with his opening solo song bemoaning his dislike of the name his parents had bestowed upon him, and he went on to steal the show with his personality and acting ability shining through in each scene. He has a heavy script to maintain and he performed superbly; he acted, danced or sang in almost every scene not forgetting or stumbling on a single word; he is remarkable, and his diction and stage presence is excellent, as is his singing and timing.

 The story centres around Barry who blames his parents (Susan and Geoff) for “being boring, never buying him cool stuff, being tired all the time and being too strict”. So, he makes a wish for better parents and finds himself whisked away to a place he’s never heard of called, Youngdon in the ‘United Kid-dom’; it’s an alternate universe where children get to pick out their perfect parents with the assistance of staff at The Parent Agency.

 We see Barry trying to choose which parents he would rather have, other than his own.  The scenarios are very funny, and emotions go into overdrive as the story unfolds.

 Osian Salter, Eli Sowden-Mehta and Louis Wilkins share the role of Barry with Max Bispham whilst the show tours, whilst his parents are played by Rebecca McKinnis (Mum, Susan) and Rakesh Boury (Dad, Geoff).

 The rest of the talented company are Kazmin Borrer, Elliot Broadfoot, Natasha Cayabyab, , Sarah McFarlane, Joshian Angelo Omaña, Alan Vicary, Ralph Birthwell, Althea Burey, Elliot Copeland, Jessica Daugirda, Sophia Lewis and Robbie Scott who excel in every scene.

 This family-friendly show had the audience laughing and toe-tapping to the catchy songs; the whole cast play various roles, and they manage to transition from one character to another seamlessly, they are all fantastically talented and watchable.

 The set was truly creative; it morphed smoothly from home to office, in one scene incorporating a moving bus, a football pitch and a stage full of trampolines, plus two girls careering effortlessly around on hoverboards as if it was the most normal thing, almost like they were walking.

 The stage set utilises vivid strip-lights, audience focused search-lights, dry ice, and an assortment of other devices which won’t be mentioned here as it may spoil the enjoyment for those planning on seeing the show. Suffice to say, they all add to the entertainment value of the show which is marvellously compiled to produce a very entertaining production. A live band situated at the back of the stage added to the enjoyable family-themed entertainment.

 The Casting Director is Olivia Laydon, with children casting by Amy Beadel; the creative team also includes Choreographer Carrie-Anne Ingrouille, Costume Designer Sarah Mercadé, Lighting Designer Zoe Spurr, Assistant Director Francesca Hsieh, Music Supervisor Nick Finlow, Music Director Ellen Campbell, Sound Designer Paul Gatehouse, Associate Sound Designer Richard Jones, and wig, hair and make-up Designer Craig Forrest-Thomas.

 The show is a delight from start to finish and had the audience enthralled from the opening number.

 The Parent Agency is at The Storyhouse Chester until 2nd March 2025, ahead of a planned national tour and London run.

 Reviewer Anne Pritchard 19.02.2025

 

 

 

 

 

MUSIC THEATRE REVIEW - Queen Extravaganza 02 Apollo Manchester

Queen Extravaganza is the official tribute band which is touring the UK and Ireland to mark the 50th anniversary of the tremendously popular Queen hit song, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’. Queen guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor are the masterminds behind tribute band Queen Extravaganza, which doesn’t attempt to mimic Queen band members but performs Queen classic hit tunes from Queens extensive catalogue of hit singles and albums.

The stage set is adorned with an oversized golden Queen emblem portrayed against the backdrop which is draped with purple curtains and a wall of spotlights. The drumkit is set up on a platform with steps leading up to it and a keyboard is stage left. The 85 year old theatre which was originally a theatre has an intimate feel, and the auditorium has few seats unoccupied; the audience ages varied from teenagers to more mature Queen fans of 60+.

The audience exploded into cheers and whistles as the six-piece band members burst onto the stage whilst white strobe lights flashed in abundance. Vocalist, Alirio Netto, bedecked in a black glittery jacket and shades took the lead singing ‘We Will Rock You’ to the delight of the audience eager to lap up the band’s offerings. He followed this with ‘Tie Your Mother Down’, with the wall of lights on the backdrop changing to different colours throughout and finished the number aka Freddie Mercury with his powerful stance, arm raised, on the steps leading up to the drumkit.

The popular ‘Somebody to Love’ came next with encouragement by vocalist Gareth Taylor for audience participation who eagerly clapped and joined in; Taylor then asked them to “Make some noise” whilst singing ‘Under Pressure’, duetting with drummer/vocalist George ‘Chips’ Farrar. Farrar followed with a rendition of the B side of hit single, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, ‘I’m in Love With My Car’.

‘You’re my Best Friend’ from the enduring Queen album, ‘ A Night at the Opera’ was performed by Netto and Taylor together followed by ‘Killer Queen’ which had the audience on their feet dancing and clapping.

‘Days of Your Life’, penned by Queen drummer, Roger Taylor was performed whilst four videos on the backdrop depicted Queen members in their youth and then Taylor sang ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ asking for more participation from the audience.  ‘I Want it All’ followed with guitarists, Nick Radcliffe and François-Olivier Doyon along with Taylor, performing a threesome solo guitar spot together front of stage.

After a short interval ‘It’s a Kinda Magic’ delighted the audience as the four videos on stage showed animated caricatures of Queen members whilst search spotlights scanned the audience with the sounds of explosions and gun shots. Radcliffe performed a guitar solo on ‘ Who Wants to Live Forever’, written by Brian May and ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’, a firm favourite.

‘Fat Bottomed Girls’, ‘I Want to Break Free’ and ‘Another One Bites the Dust’ had the audience enthralled, singing and dancing enthusiastically.  Musical Director/Keyboard Player, Darren Reeves joined vocalists Taylor and Netto front of stage to conduct a sing-off from the audience and ‘Radio GaGa’ helped keep the party going.

The show culminated with ‘ Bohemian Rhapsody’ with the videos on stage showing the original Queen video and an encore of ‘We Are The Champions’ completed the show.

The music is loud, very loud, sometimes the vocalists are not in tune and often chords are missed by the guitarists, but the overall experience is memorable due to the song content. Strong strobe spotlights flashed continuously onto the stage and at times onto the audience so anyone with vision sensitivity may find it unwelcome and uncomfortable or painful.

Queen Extravaganza is touring UK in 2025, tour dates may be found at https://www.queenonline.com/quex/upcoming_shows.

Reviewer: Anne Pritchard on 15.02.2025

 Photos - Stufish Entertainment Architects

 

 

 

STUDENT THEATRE SCHOOL REVIEW - RELIABLE FICTIONS Arden Theatre School, Manchester College, Manchester

 Written by The Arden Theatre's tutor Graham Lappin, 'Reliable Fictions' is a song cycle about life's relationships that could have been, had they only been written better!  As Lappin states, we all create our own reliable fictions on a daily basis, our stories, the ones that matter, but always our own versions of them. Love of course takes centre stage in the vast majority of these fictions of course. In fact, my main concern with this song cycle was that for it 65 minute duration (performed without a break) it became both quite predictable and very samey. Most of the songs were slow, considerate pieces, torch songs if you will, even when the tempo was upped slightly in a couple of the more jazzier numbers, the directing and the pace remained constant, as did the performers' thought processes. We longed for a little more than a simple walk across the stage to sit on the circular dais in the centre; we ached for the character to burst into a spontaneous run rather than the predestined amble that affected them all And we hoped to hear the band strike up a really cool up-tempo piece which went just a little faster than molto allegretto. However, all that being said, the music was harmonic, tuneful, and each song individual, working well with the performer or performers chosen to sing it. I loved the full company close harmonies, in fact, when they came, the harmonies in general were lush.

 Performed on a very simple set of a parquet floor and central circular dais, with the live band in a line behind but separated by both a small step and some clever lighting [the simple but effective lighting design pleased me throughout] they were always in tune and sounding great; just ever so slightly too loud at times, masking the quieter, more intimate moments of the soloists. Costuming was also kept to an absolute minimum, with the cast in generic blues and whites, although I would have liked, on a personal note, to have seen a little change to this for each character, perhaps by the simple addition of a feather boa, a hat, or a bag.

 The ensemble cast, comprised of third year graduating students of the Vocal Studies And Performance course at Arden Theatre School - namely - Sarah Bush, Cal Carlisle, Charlotte Collins, Mabel Cozens, Jacob Jones, Cherry Lam, Charlotte Lisgo, KImberley Scholes, Halle Thomson, and Emily Smith - they proved that acting people older than themselves with life's baggage was not beyond them, and although they did not yet have the maturity and experience to be able to give fully rounded performances, they made a brave and realistic attempt; whilst the cycle provided many opportunities for them to showcase their vocal talents whilst also giving them much scope for development.

 REVIEWER - ALASTAIR ZYGGU on 7.2.25