Here and Now: The Steps Musical, UK Tour Review (2026)
Written by James for Theatre & Tonic
Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review. All views are our own
Walking into The Curve Theatre, Leicester to see Here & Now felt like stepping straight back into a glittery, chaotic 90s dream! As a 90s baby, I was completely sold from the first beat. This is musical theatre at its most unapologetically camp: loud, colourful and absolutely bursting with joy. Built around the music of Steps, the show has a nostalgia factor which is off the charts. I didn’t realise how many lyrics I still had stored deep in my brain until I found myself mentally singing along to basically every number. It’s certainly not subtle, but it doesn’t need to be. The whole thing feels like a celebration of growing up with pop bangers and chaotic life choices.
At the centre of it is Caz, played by Lara Denning, and she is genuinely phenomenal. She absolutely anchors the show. There’s warmth and a real emotional depth beneath all the glitter. When she sings, everything else just stops. She gives Caz this big-hearted, slightly chaotic energy that makes you root for her instantly.
The story itself is sweet: it’s a bit thin in places, but that’s not the point. It’s about friendship, love, and finding your “summer of love” even when life throws obstacles in your path. Crucially, it’s very gay in the best way. Robbie (Blake Patrick Anderson), being fully in his tumultuous hookup era before stumbling into something real is hilarious and oddly touching, particularly a moment when he says he even fancies the red light man at the crossing because “he just looks so bossy!”
One of my favourite plot points was the gloriously messy relationship drama: especially the moment where one of the protagonists, Vel (Jacqui Dubois), ditches her partner (the iconic trolley man Lesley played by John Stacey) for Tracey (Lauren Woolf), the stock delivery queen. It’s camp, it’s chaotic, and it got a proper audience reaction. That’s the magic of this show: it invites you to laugh and enjoy the ride.
Visually, it’s like being trapped inside a neon fever dream. The supermarket setting explodes with colour, all pinks and blues and flashing lights, and the choreography is non-stop. Every other moment seems to burst into a full dance routine, and it’s infectious. It completely commits to the aesthetic.
Then there are the characters who push it into full-on panto territory. The villain, Max (Edward Baker-Duly) is played with such exaggerated flair that the audience genuinely wants to boo, and honestly, we did. It felt like proper British theatre tradition meeting pop musical chaos. And the French-obsessed, slightly useless manager Patricia (Sally Ann Mathews) was absolutely ridiculous, constantly mispronouncing everything and stealing laughs every time she appeared with her clipboard.
We need to talk about the ending. The megamix is pure serotonin. It’s nostalgic and completely unashamed. By that point, any restraint in the audience has gone, and it feels like a shared celebration rather than just a curtain call. The show literally ends on a high that makes you want to get up and dance.
Ultimately, Here & Now is not trying to be deep, intellectual theatre: it’s trying to make you feel good, and it absolutely succeeds. It’s affirming, nostalgic, a little bit chaotic, and very, very camp. If you grew up anywhere near the 90s or just love a night of pure escapism, this is a must-see.
Here and Now: The Steps Musical is touring the UK until May 2026.
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
