42nd Street at Southampton Mayflower
DISCLOSURE – TICKETS TO SEE THE SHOW WERE GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER AND GUEST FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW
Reviewed by Maddie Reynolds
This is a musical I have always wanted to see, so I was excited to have the opportunity to review it. The Mayflower is on a good train route and around a 10 minute walk. I drove to the venue, there is plenty of parking around the theatre including off road parking and multi-storey car parks, all reasonably priced.
We arrived at the Mayflower in Southampton just before 7, we were seated in the dress circle row E and had a great view of the whole stage and set. The story originally came to Broadway in 1980 before hitting the West End in 1984. It was a film before this and so it starts in 1933 this was during the height of the great depression, backstage musical rehearsing a show.
The opening number set the scene well, costumes and set were stunning throughout the show. The quality of dancing in each scene and the way they moved around the stage was beautifully presented. My favourite numbers were when they were all tap dancing.
The quick changes were hugely impressive, from the whole cast. They remained professional and slick throughout. Despite the chorus line being smaller than I anticipated, they brought the whole show together in each scene with there stunning and impeccable dancing.
Samantha Womack played Dorothy Brock, with enthusiasm and passion. Her voice is outstanding, and complemented many of the other vocalists in the show. She was a brilliant lead role for this character and really brought the character to life for me.
Sam Lips plays the part of Billy Lawlor, he stood out for me, his role that at times required him to be powerful and protective at others. His solo pieces across the show are amazing. He is a very talented dancer. When he danced with Peggy together it was a fantastic partnership.
Nicole played Peggy with true commitment, she opened up Act 2 as her leading lady and what an incredible job she did. Her voice and dancing were incredible, she moved around the stage beautifully and I was mesmerised when she was dancing with partners or by herself.
Les Dennis played Bert Barry and brought so well, his Comical approach to the role had the audience laughing. His many suit changes, each suit was vibrant and colourful added to the light hearted moments.
The cast moved around he set setting the scene of a real theatre performance. The bigger pieces were moved around by the backstage crew to get each scene set in the different locations. I liked when they used the screen and you had the show going on behind them. When they did the shape and shadow dancing it showed the amazing patterns of movement required in the dancing. It was beautiful to watch.
I didn’t think I knew any of the musical numbers but found that I did, the songs were very catchy and enjoyed each piece during the show. And when they were singing and dancing together the voice projection was so clear. Impeccable timing throughout the dancing especially when in the fast tap dancing scenes.
I went with my friend who had seen the show in London a few years ago and she was impressed with how the tour lived up to way it was performed on a bigger stage in London. They used the whole stage well for the set pieces and the cast used every bit of the stage to perform an outstanding show.
I would Rate this show a 5/5 I would definitely recommend and go see it again.
The tickets were gifted by the Mayflower for the purpose of this review and is currently on there as part of their tour until Saturday 7th October, tickets priced at £24.50 to £49.50
They are doing a tour of the country until 2024.
Tickets can be purchased on their website https://www.mayflower.org.uk/whats-on/42nd-street-2023/
Or by calling the box office on 02380 711811
Rating: 5/5