Buddy, The Buddy Holly Story At The Lyceum, Sheffield Review

Reviewed by Jenny Bray

As you may have guessed by the title, this musical is based on Buddy Holly’s rise to fame. It’s a bit of a veteran musical in that it’s been around since 1989 and spent over 14 years on the West End and also toured all over the world!

The story is based around Buddy Holly’s rise to fame and sudden, tragic end (which is done very tastefully). I’d like to say it’s his life story, but it only actually really covers around 18 months, which was the timeframe of his rock and roll success before his unfortunate death. He was a prolific writer though and managed to fit a whole lot of songs in to this short period of time. This show includes a myriad of those songs, including; That’ll Be The Day, Every Day, Peggy Sue, Maybe Baby and Heartbeat. I can’t claim to be a huge Buddy fan, unlike the majority of the audience, but I did recognise most of the songs.

The first act mainly tells the story of Buddy Holly and The Crickets trying to break free from their initial country music songs they’ve been made to produce by their current Texas label. It is narrated by Buddy’s radio DJ friend Hipockets Duncan (Thomas Mitchells) who helps the story flow between Buddy and the bands different attempts to get signed with their rock and roll offerings rather than their country music. When they first start to rock things up a bit they get told they’re rubbish, until told to try a studio ‘over the border’. They’re then picked up by, signed to and managed by Norman Petty (also Thomas Mitchells).

The second act is less focussed on just Buddy and mainly centres around his final gig, in The Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa. The second part was much more like attending the concert itself and the compere addressed the audience as if we were the real audience at that show, including shout outs to attendees from various American cities, which felt a little odd as we were sat in the audience in Sheffield. Buddy and the other singers, Ritchie Valens (Miguel Angel) and The Big Bopper (Christopher Chandler) also ‘perform’ to the audience as if at the gig itself. Christopher Chandler particularly showcased some amazing showmanship skills although Miguel Angel was clear winner for the moves.

The cast is only made up of 12 people in total, so some people play several parts throughout the show. They also play a variety of different instruments, highlighting those talents as well as their acting skills. Multiple costume changes help establish them as their different characters and it felt like there were more different people amongst the many characters, which is a credit to both them and the director (Matt Salisbury). Of note was Thomas Mitchells, who played a number of what seemed quite substantial roles, yet moved smoothly between them. These included DJ Hipockets Duncan as narrator, Norman Petty the producer who signed them, the DJ at the Apollo Theatre and the MC at Clearlake!

A.J. Jenks played Buddy, who gave a brilliant performance, full of energy throughout. His American ‘Texas drawl’ accent was realistic and his singing voice was great. He also had an impressive selection of moves, including the 50’s rock and roll hops and shuffles. Before they split towards the end, Buddy is supported by The Crickets. Joe B Mauldin, played by Joe Butcher, was the stand out performer for me playing the double bass and chucking it around as if it was an air guitar rather than a large, heavy instrument. At times he plays it upside down or does various poses with it, which provided numerous laughs.

I loved some of the storyline showing how Buddy responds to Norman telling him to take his glasses off when signing him but Buddy pushes back, saying he’ll do things his way and continue wearing his glasses. It also shows them performing at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem, New York, to an all black audience, which was unheard of at the time, although they managed to win them over.

The stage setting was quite simple yet effective, with a geometric design for much of the time, with different names lit up to show the different studios they went to. It was covered with huge, flowing curtains with changing coloured lights shone on them for other scenes.

The costumes were 1950’s era, with Buddy and the band showcasing an array of different suits and the women in various fancy dresses with large skirts.

The Lyceum is the traditional Sheffield theatre and is well signposted around the city centre with plenty of parking nearby. Remember to pick up your ticket for the 1st hour free at the Charles Street Q park car park if you park there. There is a bar on each floor and a snack shop.

This show is definitely more music than story, which is great if you want to hear a lot of Buddy’s songs in one sitting. Some of the audience found it hard to contain themselves throughout the show, with lots of people mouthing along to songs and clapping along. I’d say this show felt more like an immersive concert, particularly the second half. Even if you’re not a fan of Buddy Holly, this is an interesting musical to go to in terms of finding out a bit more about his rise to fame and the 1950’s rock and roll era (coming from someone who wasn’t fully aware of Buddy’s story prior to attending). The crowd gave a standing ovation and everyone left on a feel good high, with various catchy Buddy Holly songs in their heads.

Rating: I rate it a 4.5/5

Tickets cost from £15 to £55.50
Buddy is at Sheffield Lyceum between 4th and 8th July 2023.
For more information or to book tickets visit www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk or call the Box Office on 0114 249 6000
Sheffield Theatres, 55 Norfolk Street, Sheffield, S1 1DA