Reviewed by Jan Mellor
So, the hit musical Hair is celebrating its 50th anniversary – wow I remember fondly the songs ‘Aquarius’ and ‘let the sunshine in from this show when I was little and hearing about this musical that was all about, peace love and harmony – little did I realise that I would be fortunate enough to see this in my local theatre in the Northwest. On moving into the theatre, I was greeted by a very colourful screen that was tattooed with the signs of love, peace and liberty – come to the right place then!
The stage set was an amazing kaleidoscope of every rainbow colour you can think of. The group of amazing singers and dancers entered the auditorium by dancing down the aisles to join the band and colours on the stage. And so, we were engulfed with non-stop dancing and singing with every single cast member showing their awesome skills and abilities. The songs started with Aquarius and I was immediately in ‘the zone’. George Berger (played magnificently by Jake Quickenden) introduced himself whilst the cast oozed their athletic bodies around him and the stage.
Disappointingly, the sound went off for 10 minutes but as the sound resumed Hud (played by the very charismatic Marcus Collins) regained his role with ease. The songs and dances continued through their story of love, harmony, promiscuity, hard drugs and their desire for a free world with an electric energy that I have never witnessed before on stage. This was wonderful!
The second act was equally as vibrant and fast pace with again non-stop dancing, singing and acrobatics. Every single cast member had excellent voices and I couldn’t pick between them on their sheer talent and skill. The ones that did stand out were – Jake Quickenden, Paul Wilkins (who played the tormented Claude searching for himself and his fight between serving for his country in war torn Vietnam and staying in his peaceful haven|), Aisha Pease who played the intoxicating Dionne and Daisy Wood-Davis who played George’s girlfriend.
The cast transported us all with their sheer desire to live, love and be loved into their world of drug-induced fantasy with a punch. This was a spectacular display of non-stop dancing, singing and expressionism. A fantasy we were eagerly exploring throughout the whole of the performance.
An outstanding performance that all hippies, ex-hippies or simply lovers of talent should see. The audience joined the cast on stage at the end of the show and everyone enjoyed the dip into a world that the last 50 years has still embraced.
A fantastic show! A must see!
Rating: 5/5
Tickets cost from £13 (plus £3.65 transaction fee).
Hair the Musical is at the Liverpool Empire from 20-25 May 2019, for more information or to book tickets visit www.atgtickets.com/liverpool or call the box office on 0844 8713017.
Liverpool Empire, Lime Street, Liverpool, Merseyside, L1 1JE | 0844 8713017
