REVIEW | The Show Must Go On! Live Concert (Online)
The Show Must Go On! LIVE (Online)
The Palace Theatre, London
★★★★★
The pandemic caused a catastrophic impact on the theatre industry, with over a billion pounds being lost in tickets! However, out of the darkness came The Theatre Support Fund+. Set up in May 2020 by two friends who work within the industry, Chris Marcus and Damien Stanton created something that raised much needed funds for the theatre community. A lot of the people within the industry lost their livelihoods overnight and had to navigate new ways to live and earn their income, whilst also trying to keep safe from the developing pandemic circulating in the UK. Their ‘Show Must Go On!’ Campaign perfectly captures the passion behind this industry and the determination to get those curtains rising again.
To mark a celebration of this industry, The Show Must Go On! Live at the Palace Theatre came about for a limited run only. Luckily for those who were unable to bag a ticket or don’t feel ready to sit in a theatre again, they were able to bring the concert live to your home. Bringing together a multi-award winning creative team, a cast of over 50 West End stars and an orchestra made up of the best musicians the West End has to offer; this night was a momentous step in getting those theatres reopened and audiences back in seats again.
Hosted by Bonnie Langford and Trevor Dion Nicholas who began the bill with an epic song, written specifically for the concert by Stiles and Drewe ‘The Show Must Go On‘ which encapsulated the entire past 14 months in a stellar number. My favourite line being “we don’t mind an interval but this one takes the piss” – I definitely think this song needs to be released please! They absolutely ensured this concert flowed well and kept audiences engaged throughout.
The Show Must Go On! concert navigates us through a joyous evening from 18 of the hottest shows in the West End (where was Amelie on the bill though?!) meaning we can jump on a broomstick to Oz for Wicked, sail to the Greek Islands for a flavour of Mamma Mia! or even whizzing back to the 80s with the new musical, Back To The Future, all in one concert! Of course, all of the musicals are in the safe hands of those talented individuals who take their characters to new heights and captivate audiences with their performances night after night for your dose of escapism. The concert also enabled recent graduates to be a part of the evening, giving some of them the opportunity to join the choir. They gave each of the musical numbers a strength that could not have been achieved without them.
The line up of outstanding talent and outpouring of love for this industry oozed from The Palace Theatre stage, perfectly lit with a The Show Must Go On LED light above the orchestra. The collection of talent on that stage blew me away from start to finish but there were some definitive moments of the night for me.
Kayi Ushe showed us why he’ll be making a fierce role out of Simba when he joins the cast of The Lion King as it reopens in July, with this being its 21st year in the West End. He was gorgeous in his rendition of Can You Feel The Love Tonight? and definitely leaves you wanting more from him. Trevor Dion Nicholas took on King George III in his rendition of You’ll Be Back from the epic Hamilton. He was naturally good at this role and captured the humorous side of this character well.
Aisha Jawando is just captivating singing We Don’t Need Another Hero from TINA: The Tina Turner Musical. The goose bumps came almost immediately when the fantastic John Owen Jones took grasp of Bring Him Home and when Alice Fearn hit the heights with Me & The Sky from Come From Away. There was one performance I was eagerly awaiting in this concert, Lucy St Louis giving us just a flavour of what we can expect of her when she takes the reigns as Christine for The Phantom of the Opera when it reopens. St Louis will certainly give this role something else and I cannot wait.
You can watch The Show Must Go On! concert again on YouTube for a limited run (11-12th June?) here.
You can also donate and continue to support the theatre community here.