ROCK OF AGES - THEATRE REVIEW

ROCK OF AGES AT THE BIRMINGHAM NEW ALEXANDRA THEATRE

Theatre Run: Monday 12 - Saturday 17 May 2014
Performance Reviewed: Monday 12 May 2014 (Press Night)

Reviewed by Kyle Pedley

Rock of Ages is a difficult beast to pigeonhole. It doesn’t so much suffer from an identity crisis as an identity overload, jostling with so many characters and subplots that can’t seem to decide if they’re being deliberately parodic or so-satirical-it’s-ultimately-sincere, and a fiercely postmodern approach that bandies around with tone so schizophrenically it sometimes feels more akin to musical theatre whiplash than anything else. The smash hits of the 80’s are in there too, and are plentiful, though some of the arrangements are disappointingly short and the whole ‘Rock’ through-line sometimes feels more of a clumsy afterthought than a titular McGuffin. Fortunately, for all the tonal incongruences and haphazardness of it’s plot, Rock of Ages does at least crucially make good on it’s promise of a fun, infectious and ultimately rather irrepressible evening of solid music and vibrant, high energy (see: super-charged) entertainment.

PRISCILLA: QUEEN OF THE DESERT - Theatre Review

PRISCILLA: QUEEN OF THE DESERT THE MUSICAL AT THE WOLVERHAMPTON GRAND THEATRE

Theatre Run: Monday 27 January - Saturday 1 February 2014

Performance Reviewed: Thursday 30 January 2014

Reviewed by Kyle Pedley

The Midlands sees the return of one of our top-reviewed shows of last year as the camp, colour and craziness of Priscilla: Queen of the Desert the Musical wheels into Wolverhampton this week in its fabulous, inimitable style. We awarded this same UK touring production a top five star rating when we reviewed it in Birmingham last March, and bar one or two minor set changes - characters sitting on the floor where they were once on a bed, one of the character introduction set pieces being a little more minimalised - this is still the same outrageous, hilarious and supremely entertaining feel-good spectacle as ever, and one of the most genuinely fun (and funny) musicals we’ve had the pleasure of seeing and reviewing.