Soul Sister at The Lowry Manchester Review
Soul Sister
The Lowry, Manchester
3 – 8 June 2013
Reviewed by Debbie Tasker
Where do I start? The whole show was out of this world! I am a seasoned theatre goer and this is by far the best show I have seen in recent times. The evening flew by and I could easily of sat (and danced) my way through it all again as soon as the curtain came down.
Soul Sister is inspired by the music, life and times of Ike and Tina Turner. It covers 30 years of the music icons careers with an easy to follow storyline that uses cartoon strip projections, flashbacks of events in history, and video footage of Tina (Emi Wokoma) on a large screen at the back of the stage to fill in the gaps not shown during the show.
It contains a backlog of 25 hit singles including Proud Mary, A Fool in Love, What's Love Got to Do With it, I Don't Wanna Fight No More, amongst other fantastic songs. The scene where Tina sings River Deep, Mountain High in Phil Spector’s recording studio which then flips, with some brilliant scene changes to her and the band performing it on stage was phenomenal.
The show starts in 1985 at the Ritz Ballroom, New York where Tina is making her come back and singing Private Dancer. We are then transported (again with very clever scene changes) to 1956 where 16 year old Anna Mae Bullock (later to become Tina) auditions for Ike Turner and his Rhythm Kings. As we taken through the next 3 decades we learn about the often turbulent both professional and personal lives of these global superstars.
Praise has got to go to Emi Wokoma she has perfected the moves and the powerful voice of Tina and steals the show. She wowed me from the very beginning. She is very rarely of stage and put immense enthusiasm in as she struts through scenes. She is somebody to watch out for because I am sure she has a great career ahead of her.
Chris Cummings' Ike also has a faultless performance as the talented musician. He plays the coke snorting wife beater exceptionally well and has fantastic stage presence, and made me feel sympathy and respect for him.
The live band were superb. The Ikettes were flawless. The costumes amazing. and the scene sets fabulous.
For the final act we back in 1985 and the show finishes with a the audience up on their feet the cast belt out (Simply)The best – which is exactly what Soul Sister is!
You have got to go and see it, it is worth every penny. You don't have to be fan to enjoy this A* show but if you are it is a bonus.
Get your tickets and have fun.
Rating: 5/5 
Tickets cost from £22 to £35.
For more information or to book your tickets click here.
