Reviewed by Kelly Dewey
We went to see Saturday Night Fever at the Mayflower Theatre in Southampton starring Richard Winsor as Tony Manero. As always, the theatre experience at the Mayflower didn’t disappoint. We were unfortunately a little late arriving due to issues with local traffic but the staff at the door did all they could to see us through to our seats quickly and the ushers in the theatre provided a friendly welcome and explained politely that we would need to wait until a song starts to get us seated which was completely understandable.
The music and songs that accompanied the show were all the favourites from the classic John Travolta version and they got everyone toe tapping and dancing in the seats from the very start and although it was the first night of the show the actors made us feel like it had been going on for months and months due to their well-rehearsed performance and professional attitudes.
The only and very small downside side was, and I have to be honest to say that Richard Winsor didn’t seem very relaxed into the role when it came it the dancing, although he did not miss a beat, it looked like his arms were out of control and flying all over the place. He didn’t look as relaxed as the other performers and the concentration needed was very apparent. The hip thrusts (which there was a lot of!) were too fake and over exaggerated. The other male and female dancers were brilliant and even the guy above in the background shadowing the same moves as Winsor throughout the shoe looked more natural and required much less concentration. However, as I am such a big fan of John Travolta it’s hard to perfect the classic moves and rhythm so would be hard for anyone to live up to that standard in my personal view.
Apart from the dancing Windsor acted his role to perfection and maintained character throughout the performance where he projected an incredibly believable Tony Manero with just the right amount of over confidence and male bravado that you would expect from his character and when it came to the blossoming love between him and Stephanie myself and my husband were really impressed on how well acted it was and were sure there must be a love blossoming off screen.
The one particular stand out moment for us was when Stephanie and Manero had their first dance practice and it felt electric with passion.
When looking at the overall experience of the performance it was a wholly enjoyable night and a great blast from the past with the old and young attending and having a fantastic time regardless of them being fans or having even watched the film themselves.
We had such a fantastic time we ended up putting on the soundtrack on the way home too and still have not removed the disc from the cars CD players.
Rating: 4.5/5
For more information or to book tickets visit www.mayflower.org.uk or call the box office on 02380 711811.
Mayflower Theatre, Commercial Road, Southampton, SO15 1GE | 02380 711811
