Paddington The Musical - Review

Savoy Theatre, London

****

Music and lyrics by Tom Fletcher

Book by Jessica Swale

Directed by Luke Sheppard

Based on A Bear Called Paddington written by Michael Bond and the film ‘PADDINGTON’, by special arrangement with STUDIOCANAL

James Hameed and Arti Shah

Newly arrived from deepest, darkest Peru, Paddington The Musical has opened at London’s Savoy Theatre and visually, it’s a treat!

On the night of this review Abbie Purvis, the alternate Paddington, played the onstage bear as James Hameed voiced Paddington, the two of them combining to create one of the finest characters to be found on a London stage. The fusion of technical wizardry, Tahra Zafar's fabulous bear designs and the pair’s acting talent (with Purvis making her West End debut too!) truly brought Michael Bond’s kind and inquisitive bear to life. The magic of the show is lifted by Tom Pyle’s scenic design work and Ash J Woodward’s videos that give a glorious excitement to the Savoy’s stage and surrounds.

There are some absolute gems in the show’s supporting cast, with Bonnie Langford as the wise old Mrs Bird stealing her scenes with her stunning stage presence. Matching Langford is Tom Edden, arguably the nation's master of physical comedy who nimbly steps back and forward across the fourth wall as Mr Curry, the bad guy who finds redemption. Victoria Hamilton-Barritt is deliciously boo-able as the baddy Millicent Clyde, as the quartet playing the likeable Brown family all put in a decent shift.

Jessica Swale has written the show’s book and Tom Fletcher, the music and lyrics. Paddington at heart is a simple fable and while the creative pair retain the essence of Bond’s stories, too much of their take on London plays out too politically, their rose-tinted view of the capital at odds with many of the city's more ugly realities. Musically, many of the show's early melodies are bland and often with lyrics that are disappointingly inaudible. It really takes until the second act for Fletcher’s compositions to break free of the constraints of his pop-music background and display true wit.

Luke Sheppard, truly the wunderkind of modern musical theatre direction knows how to direct a family show that looks wonderful, is acted brilliantly and makes for fine, fun family entertainment.

Booking until 25th October 2026

Photo credit: Johan Persson

Natasha J Barnes plays Fanny Brice in Funny Girl - Review

Savoy Theatre, London


*****


Music by Jule Styne
Lyrics by Bob Merrill
Book by Isobel Lennart
Revised Book by Harvey Fierstein
Directed by Michael Mayer

Natasha J Barnes

Circumstances have thrust Natasha J Barnes into playing the leading role of Fanny Brice in Michael Mayer’s production of Funny Girl, recently transferred from the Menier Chocolate Factory to the West End’s Savoy Theatre.  The show has already been reviewed by www.jonathanbaz.com in both those venues – so this review is all about Barnes.

Quite simply, she is a stunning, revelatory astonishment. The role is huge, with the actress onstage almost throughout as she charts Brice’s rise from a self-confident Brooklyn kid to Broadway star.  And it is in tracing Brice’s soaring arc, that Barnes herself soars. When we first meet her as the young Fanny, all knickerbockered and hopeful, Barnes to most of the audience, is an unknown performer – but as she sings I’m The Greatest Star, we catch a tiny glimpse of life imitating art as Barnes’ talent is revealed.

It’s not just her stunning voice that rises magnificently through the show’s two signature numbers People and Don’t Rain On My Parade – it is her ability to grasp the complexities of Brice’s life and play them convincingly. We believe in her childhood, we believe in her chutzpah and eventually, as Brice evolves into an older and ultimately wiser woman, we believe Barnes’ portrayal of Brice’s deepest love for the errant Nicky Arnstein and her formidable strength as she moves forward from a failed marriage.

Barnes captures the nuance, the poise, the comedy and the raw gutsy energy that epitomised Fanny Brice – and she brings back to the role the passion that was first (and last?) seen when Sheridan Smith opened this show at the Menier 6 months ago.  Since then, Smith’s personal life has been desperately painful - and all too publicly too - and no-one would wish her a return to this most demanding of roles until she is fully fit.

But until Smith is ready to play Funny Girl again, she can at least be assured that the show is in safe hands. In a display of pure theatrical magic, Natasha J Barnes stuns us with her acting, touches our hearts with People and in closing both halves of the show with Don’t Rain On My Parade, makes spines tingle and hairs stand on end.  Barbra Streisand may have created Fanny Brice, but Barnes’ take on the role reminds one of that other classic Streisand performance, A Star Is Born.


Funny Girl is booking until 8th October

Photo credit: Manuel Harlan

Dreamgirls - Review

Savoy Theatre, London


****

Music by Henry Krieger
Lyrics and book by Tom Eyen
Directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw

Marisha Wallace

Dreamgirls is now well settled into the Savoy Theatre and comfortably booking up until the autumn. So for a reviewer with no real interest whatsoever in the TV series Glee or its much lauded star Amber Riley, what better way to assess the show than on the one night in the week when Ms Riley rests her remarkable larynx, with her Effie White played (as advertised) by Broadway diva Marisha Wallace.

The story of Dreamgirls should be well known by now. A fictitious yarn whose roots stretch back to the days of American segregation when soul and rhythm and blues, essentially “black music” (a description taken from the show’s programme notes) were striving to break into the pop charts. A Michigan trio The Dreamettes are backing vocals to R&B star Jimmy Early. Curtis Taylor Jr, an opportunistic manager recognises their potential and lures them away from Early to headline their own act billed as The Dreams. Along the way there’s love, rivalries and jealousies that play out to a backdrop of a ruthlessly cutthroat music business and some sensationally sung songs.

Strip away the music and Tom Eyen’s book is paper thin – it’s Henry Kreiger’s melodies that make the show. Wallace’s closing of the first half with a jaw dropping take on And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going proves a stunner of a powerhouse, that sends the (predominantly female) audience reeling as they totter to the bar for their half time Proseccos.

The show’s other big number is One Night Only - a song that many of today’s kids will have come to know through its X-Factor regularity, even though its chart history dates back to the 1980s – and the three Dreamgirls, along with the ensemble, give it a powerfully polished outing.

Credit where it’s due – Liisi LaFontaine and Ibinabo Jack are superb as Deena and Lorrell, Effie’s partners, Joe Aaron Reid’s Curtis is a pantomime baddy but he holds the stage magnificently. Adam J. Bernard’s Jimmy Early is a groin thrusting lithe limbed delight, while Tyrone Huntley as songwriter C.C. White is, yet again, simply magnificent in his West End presence. Huntley is already riding high in the nation's musical theatre pantheon – he can only soar further still.

Casey Nicholaw’s direction and choreography oozes imagination, Gregg Barnes costumes are as sexy as they are period-perfect, while in the pit Nick Finlow’s orchestra serve up Kreiger’s score with panache.

Bravo to Sonia Friedman and her co-producers for bringing this Broadway bonanza to London. It’s a great night out!

Booking to 21st October

Funny Girl - Review

Savoy Theatre, London

*****

Music by Jule Styne

Lyrics by Bob Merrill

Book by Isobel Lennart

Revised Book by Harvey Fierstein

Directed by Michael Mayer

Sheridan Smith

“People”, who didn’t manage to nab their seats fast enough for the Menier Chocolate Factory’s Funny Girl can most definitely rest easy in the knowledge that this acclaimed and triumphant revival is an even bigger and better show following its transfer across the river to the Savoy.

Sheridan Smith’s Fanny Brice simply oozes star quality. Her comic moments are sublime, as is the heartbreak in her portrayal of Brice’s journey as the laughs fade and her world turns ever so less funny. Smith’s versatility as an actress is displayed to heart rending consequences. She grabs the audience with her quirky grin, comic panache and a varied quip of one liners and expressions sure to catch anyone’s eye, quickly proving that she has what it takes to sweep both the dashing Nick Arnstein and the audience into both her life and our hearts. Darius Campbell plays Arnstein to perfection and opposite Smith, gives us a pairing you’ll want to root for and hate in equal measure as the tale unfolds. Equally, Marilyn Cutts as Mrs Brice gives us an all too stern, yet familiar (and alongside her friends, hilarious) mother to Fanny.

Michael Mayer’s flawless direction has allowed the transfer to grow effortlessly on to the Savoy’s stage. Lynne Page’s choreography is much more refined and suited to the larger house here, with numbers such as Henry Street and the ever so hilariously diplomatic Rat-Tat-Tat-Tat evolving from impressive, to now “stand out” at the Savoy. In particular, the magnitude and accomplished intricacy of Page’s Temporary Arrangement truly dazzles in its new home. A nod too to the ensemble, whose efforts in such a fast paced “conveyor belt” of a show, both literally and metaphorically, provide the backbone to both Fanny’s fast moving world and this epic production.

Arriving (almost) hard on the heels of Gypsy, there’s more of Jule Styne’s sensational music to fill the Savoy. Under Theo Jamieson’s baton the 14 piece band provide pizzazz and nuance in equal measure as they deliver so many seasoned songbook favourites. Harvey Fierstein too has done a fabulous job in fine-tuning Isobel Lennart’s original book, proving that even the greatest shows can be improved upon.

Just, for one minute, take a look back at London’s theatre landscape over the last 12 months. It is incredible that so many of this nation’s smaller and regional theatres have transferred sensational revivals of Broadway classics into West End houses (and, in the case of the Menier’s The Color Purple, even back to Broadway itself!). Britain’s theatre practitioners lead the way, with Funny Girl proving yet another 5* example of world class Theatre.

Booking until 8th October

Reviewed by: Jack Clements

Photo credit: Johan Persson

Guys and Dolls - Review

Savoy Theatre, London

****

Music and lyrics by Frank Loesser

Book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows

Directed by Gordon Greenberg

Jamie Parker

It is a sound idea that has seen Chichester Festival Theatre send their acclaimed 2014 production of Guys and Dolls on the road. The UK tour that commenced in Manchester in November last year is now making a 3 month stop at London's Savoy and it proves fun to re-visit some of this productions more inspired moments.

Guys and Dolls is long acknowledged as one of the Broadway greats (Kenneth Tynan famously commented that along with Death Of A Salesman, the musical was the finest example of American literature) the Savoy show throws into relief how well the show works as a study of love and the human condition. But a cautionary tale. Its cute 1940's New York patter can easily become dated and too many of the show's gags need a punchy comic delivery that not all of this company are up to.

Staying with the production from Chichester's original cast, Jamie Parker's Sky Masterson is up there with the best. His Sky has the gorgeous insouciance that the gambler demands, yet as he realises that he's never been in love before meeting Sarah, Parker reveals the cutest vulnerability too. And boy can he sing. Parker must surely rank amongst the best of his generation in acting through song.

The other gem amongst the show's four leading roles is Sophie Thompson's Miss Adelaide. Barely clad in more mink than a mink, Thompson milks Loesser's wry Manhattan wit with spot-on timing, earning our chuckling sympathy for this most long-term of fiancées.

David Haig plays Nathan Detroit. Whilst Haig may well be a national treasure in waiting, a good Detroit is a tough call and it could be suggested that Haig is also, possibly, a tad too old for the part. Aside from Sue Me he doesn't have too many singing responsibilities (probably a good thing In Haig's case). Above all Haig lacks the ridiculously implausible New York chutzpah that Bob Hoskins defined in 1982 and which, frankly, we ain't seen since. To be fair, Peter Polycarpou who triumphed in the role at Chichester, came close and he is sorely missed from this touring cast. (see note)

This reviewer is missing Clare Foster too – Siubhan Harrison makes a decent stab at Sarah Brown, but doesn't quite rise to the role's tough challenge.

The dance work however is spectacular. Andrew Wright with Carlos Acosta has created some gorgeous routines - and with imaginative Runyonland and Cuba numbers, along with some sensational sewer-dance in the Crapshooters' Ballet the show's choreography is surely amongst the best musical theatre footwork in town right now. And the Hot Box Girls are gorgeously wonderful!

The scenery (marquee lights and advertising hoardings that again suggest a nod to the National's 1982 ground-breaker) is more lightweight than lavish - though remember that this show is on tour so portable sets rather than a full blown West End set of trucks is to be expected.

If you love the show, or just simply adore imaginative dance work then it's well worth a trip to the Savoy.

NOTE:

If Sonia Friedman is reading this review here's my suggestion for a Guys and Dolls dream cast that is probably best staged within the next five years.

Jamie Parker needs to stay as Sky - he won't be bettered. But Parker, a former History Boy, needs to be re-united with his classmate James Corden as Nathan Detroit. Lob in Sheridan Smith as Miss Adelaide and with either Clare Foster or Laura Pitt-Pulford as Sarah Brown and I believe there'd be platinum fol-de-rol for Friedman.

Runs until 12th March, then tours

Gypsy - Review

Savoy Theatre, London

*****

Book by Arthur Laurents

Music by Jule Styne

Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim

Directed by Jonathan Kent

Imelda Staunton

It is rare to see perfection improved upon, but in its transfer from Chichester Festival Theatre, Jonathan Kent’s Gypsy achieves just that. A highlight of 2014, the resonance of Jule Styne's big band brassy score filled the Sussex theatre's world class open stage. But Gypsy was written in and for the Golden Age of Broadway, to be mounted on a proscenium stage. In re-sculpting their masterpiece to fit the Savoy’s traditional confines, Kent and choreographer Stephen Mear have excelled.

Like a fine wine, Imelda Staunton's Momma Rose has matured since last year's press night. To this most complex of women (a role sometimes likened to the King Lear of musical theatre), Staunton now adds an even richer lustre. Not just a pushy mother, Rose is at once loving of her daughters yet insensitive to their needs, principled and yet shamelessly opportunistic and above all, endowed with the most monstrous of egos. Staunton owns her stage mastering a complex cocktail of passion, drive and ultimately the most fragile of vulnerabilities in a virtuoso performance. Stamping her mark on the show with a strength of voice that matches perfection in tone and an unbelievable presence, her comic one-liners are as perfectly honed as the pathos she wrings in her spot-lit solo finale, Rose's Turn. Truly, Staunton is now the finest female actor of her time.

Lara Pulver is exquisite as the initially fragile and over-shadowed Louise. In Little Lamb, Pulver blends a painful poignancy alongside our horrendous realisation that she is a young woman whose emotional development is literally being stifled by her mother. In a performance of mastered subtlety, Pulver commands our sympathy throughout. Thrown onto a burlesque stage at a moment’s notice, Pulver makes her first faltering steps into small-town sleaze straight into a piercing white spotlight and her character’s awkward pain is evident. But when she emerges, sable clad in fame and fortune yet still able to comfort her distraught mother whose own dreams now lie shattered, Pulver breaks our hearts.

Peter Davison completes the leading trio. New to the show, he brings a relaxed yet weathered and leathered credibility to Herbie that was the one missing link in Chichester. Davison can sing and move in line with his stature - and as Stephen Mear has already commented, the chemistry between Davison and Staunton sparkles.

Gypsy’s gems are richly sprinkled amongst its uber-talented company, with Dan Burton’s Tulsa proving him to be as smoothly voiced as his body is lithe. Burton’s routine in All I Need Is The Girl oozes the coolest of romance, with Mear choreographing the man magnificently.

Gemma Sutton's June hits the mark in the first half. One of the leading talents of her generation, Sutton imbues her over-mothered character with just the right amount of squeaky-voiced ambition, yet also despair. Top notch dance work from this talented young lady too.

The three seen-it-all Wichita strippers played by the (far from veteran) Anita Louise Combe, Louise Gold and Julie Legrand, offer the show’s wryest perspective, with a world-weary wisdom not dissimilar to the tragi-comedy of Hamlet’s gravediggers. Their wonderful You Gotta Get A Gimmick proving gloriously and hilariously that womanhood is still to be celebrated after the flush of youth has faded. 

The kids on press night were a polished troupe, with Isla Huggins-Barr’s Baby June bravely and brilliantly dancing her socks off, winning the West End audience with a precocious charm. A nod too to Holly Hazleton’s impeccable Baby Louise, one of the few kids to transfer from Chichester in what is a challenging role.

Anthony Ward’s design deploys ingenious scene shifts, framed within a chocolate box lid of a proscenium façade, whilst Nicholas Skilbeck’s direction of his 15 piece orchestra (all brass and wind, there’s no space for schmaltzy strings in this show) breathes a magnificence into Styne’s compositions that wows from the Overture’s opening bars.

In an era when juke-box songs, fancy stage sets or stunt casting are frequently needed to sell seats, Gypsy marks (another) breath of fresh air in recognising the simple genius of a perfectly written show, exquisitely staged. Moments such as the jaw-dropping choreography of the Time Lapse Transition, Jerome Robbins' original Broadway routine, leave us stunned.

Gypsy’s stage may have shrunk since Chichester, but like Babies June and Louise, this show has grown. Only in town for a few months, they don’t get better than this. Know too that in her Momma Rose, Imelda Staunton is offering the musical theatre performance of the century.

To read my recent interview with Stephen Mear on bringing Gypsy to the West End, click here

To read my review of the original Chichester production, click here.

Gypsy is now booking until 28th November 2015

The Gypsy In Mear - Stephen Mear On Choreographing Gypsy For The West End

clockwise from left Dan Burton, Stephen Mear, Lara Pulver and Imelda Staunton

SINCE THIS ARTICLE WAS FIRST PUBLISHED - GYPSY HAS OPENED AT THE SAVOY.

READ MY 5* REVIEW HERE

As Gypsy opens at the Savoy Theatre tonight, I caught up with its choreographer and one of the country's leading creative talents, Stephen Mear to talk about the show and in particular to understand more of his work with and respect for leading lady Imelda Staunton.

The Chichester Festival Theatre production of Jule Styne and Stephen Sondheim's classic was one of the highlights of 2014 winning the Critics Circle award for Best Musical and cementing Staunton's position as quite possibly the nation's greatest musical theatre actress with her portrayal of the complex if monstrous Mamma Rose.

JB:    Stephen, thank you so much for finding the time to talk during the hectic work of Gypsy’s preview run. How's it’s going?

SM:    I don't think I've experienced anything like it before, ever, to be quite honest. We’ve already had Stephen Sondheim in to watch the show and with Imelda having got a full standing ovation after Rosie’s Turn at the first preview, it's really been quite breathtaking.

The full house just stood up instantaneously. It was quite something. I've always said with Imelda it's like watching a volcano erupt. It's all just so brilliantly acted. She's so controlled even in the bonkers section. She's just on the right side of everything. 

JB:    What is it like for you to have created something that was so sensationally acclaimed back in the summer and to then have a chance to revisit it?

SM:    I think it's always amazing to go back and revisit a show that you've done, if only because you have more time to work out different things.

We've changed Lara's strips and made them quicker and more continuous. That was wonderful to do.

JB:    And what challenges have you found in re-staging the show’s movement from Chichester’s modern thrust to the proscenium at the Savoy? 

SM:    At nearly twice the size of the Savoy, Chichester is a wonderful place. You've got three sides and you have to make sure everyone is entertained, including those to the side, otherwise there’s the risk that some of the audience might slightly miss out at some point. We’ve mastered that now, not least because I've worked there so many times.

JB:    The show very much describes a specific time and period in American history. What drove you in your vision to have the dance and movement reflect the era? 

SM:    Being true to the period is always so important. I have watched so many of Gypsy Rose Lee's strips, to try and improve Lara's strip routines

And I love that period anyway. I was brought up on MGM musicals!

 JB:    Tell me about choreographing Lara Pulver

SM:    I'm very lucky that we have got Lara who is just sensational and such a brilliant lady with her physicality. She goes from being a plain Jane, and you think, "How the hell is she going to become a fabulous stripper?" She does because, one, she's an amazing actress and two, she's so aware of her body, of how it works. She's just a dream to work with. 

It's the same with Dan Burton with All I Need is the Girl. I know how he works and I know his physicality. He's just so sensational to work on. His line and his flair and his elegance and style. He's got that period style for this piece as well.

JB:    And what does newcomer Peter Davison brings to the show. 

SM:    Peter has brought something different and it’s quite funny. His chemistry is wonderful with Imelda. They seem to be more flirtatious in the first scene which sets it up for me.  He also stands up to her a lot at the end, and it is quite interesting when he does that. 

JB:    Imelda Staunton is one of the finest actresses on both stage and screen and also one of the few who has earned an outstanding reputation that straddles both drama and musical theatre.

SM:    You see, I thought that when I was first was going to do the job, I thought, "I wonder how good her voice is?" And it is truly stunning!

She can sing, she can belt those big notes that Mama Rosie has to do at the end without going down a key or anything. She does not miss a beat. Sometimes she will go away to work on a routine and the next week, she'll come back and she's nailed it exactly to the timing, but with it all looking so natural without ever making it seem like I've said, "Look could you do a shoulder roll there."

She shows all sides of her character. She doesn't show just nice sides, she shows bonkers, sexy, everything. She's like a roller coaster and it’s that that keeps people on the edge of their seat.

JB:    She has an outstanding reputation in the industry as an excellent leading lady. Did you see that in her?

SM:    She's 100% a brilliant leader of the company like you wouldn't believe. She goes around the dressing rooms saying hello to everybody. She's a real star, beyond a star, I think.

When you hear of companies that are having troubles, it normally stems from the top. But if you've got somebody like Imelda, nobody’s ever going to mess about and everybody has to up their game. She's just got that old school mentality that not only knows how to keep everybody happy, she leads the show to what it is.

JB:    To what extent do you reference Jerome Robbins’ original Broadway choreography? 

SM:    We very much wanted to respect Jerome in the scene where the kids turn from young to old, having the old and young actors going simultaneously through each other without the audience suddenly realizing that they are all on stage. That was a challenge but it worked out great and rightly so, like many iconic moments. Jerome Robbins' era paved the way for all of us choreographers and it’s nice to tip your hat to people if you're doing one of their shows

JB:    Stephen, thanks again and I wish you and the company "broken legs" all round for a successful West End run!

Gypsy is now booking at the Savoy Theatre until 28th November 2015

Click here to read my review of the original Chichester production.

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

Savoy Theatre, London

****

Music and lyrics by David Yazbek
Written by Jeffrey Lane
Directed by Jerry Mitchell

Rufus Hound and Robert Lindsay

Located in the plush basement of one of London’s grandest hotels, the Savoy Theatre could not be a more fitting venue for a show that gloriously revolves around both the real and (far more entertainingly) the illusory trappings of wealth and style. This UK premiere of David Yazbek's Dirty Rotten Scoundrels is a chic and jazzy treat, with the show's cracking overture in particular being a perfect scene setter. 

The story owes its modern-day fame to the classic movie caper starring Steve Martin and Michael Caine. The screen giants played two rival con-men plying the French Riviera and out to fleece millionaire heiress Christine Colgate, of her fortune. In the right hands the tale is comedy gold, with Yazbeck describing the movie as “ripe for adaptation”. The Tony winning show first opened in the US in 2006, directed by Jack O'Brien with Jerry Mitchell choreographing. This time round, in addition to the dance work, Mitchell returns to helm the show, describing his take on the the piece as “re-conceived and re-imagined”. Whilst the producers can be assured of a hit as this is (yet another) musical that has been safely based upon and inspired by a massive movie, it still bursts with invigorating panache and style. 

Gimmick free, there is a reliance upon the traditional values of strong tunes, clever lyrics and classy performances. The movie set a high bar for the two leading men and when it comes to delivering faux class in London, Robert Lindsay and Rufus Hound as the lovable rogues are sublime. Lindsay, surely another national treasure in waiting, plays the cool and experienced con Lawrence Jameson, with his first appearance on stage prompting an unusual (and British traditionalists may venture to suggest, unwelcome) New York style round of applause. Sliding into the piece with a suave charm, he seals the illusion of the Riviera location. Alongside Hound, very much an emergent star of the modern era, the two are an engine of pinpoint pace, delivering some of the best comic timing in town. 

Other stand out performances come from Katherine Kingsley's Colgate, whose voice gives Yazbeck’s melodies a sexiness and innocence, whilst John Marquez as Andre Thibault has a great time with some of Jeffrey Lane’s cheeky one liners. Mitchell’s direction is canny throughout, though his choreography despite being stunning and sharp, lacks a risk that may well have given some of the bigger ensemble numbers greater impact. 

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels is an example of first class musical theatre. One grins throughout and in much the same way that rascal Jameson returns to to the Riviera for each season, so are audiences likely to do the same for this dirty rotten treat of a show. 

Booking to 29th November 2014

Let It Be

Savoy Theatre, London

***

Music and lyrics by The Beatles

Directed by John Maher

One year on, Let It Be played to a packed house as it celebrated the anniversary of its arrival in the West End. It's a simply conceived show, presenting The Beatle's greatest hits, performed live and to an exceptional standard. Where other "juke-box musicals" have sought to frame a story around a catalog of classic numbers, pure fiction in Mamma Mia and We Will Rock You, history in Jersey Boys, Let It Be makes a bold move as a production by dropping all narrative whatsoever, it's simply songs.

The programme informs us the actors on stage are selected from a group of possible performers, but it's not until the final bow that we are told who's who on the night. This leads to a sterility of connection between audience and cast as the identities of the performers are withheld until the final bow. There is no spontaneity and the occasional asides from the on-stage Fab Four are scripted from actual utterances and delivered with pinpoint synchronicity that allows the (impressive) lights and techno to seamlessly flow together. It's every inch a packaged, manufactured show that is based upon a band that was anything but manufactured. If you are seeking a story of The Beatles you'll need to look elsewhere.

But as a technical piece of performance and stagecraft, this show is excellent. Four actor-musos with an additional keyboards wizard upstage, reproduce The Beatles' sound almost perfectly. No easy feat when one considers that the entire English speaking world has the band's songs in their DNA and judging by the Japanese contingent in the audience, grinning in delight through nearly all of the show, quite possibly the rest of the world too! The vocals and music are magnificent and whilst the programme shamefully doesn't credit a Wigs Designer someone somewhere has clearly done a fantastic job, with the boys looking fantastic as they age convincingly through the songs.

Opening with I Saw Her Standing There the authentic recreation of the band's sound is astonishing. Memorable on the night were James Fox's Paul McCartney on piano giving a surprisingly moving Yesterday, along with projected video backdrops for both A Day In The Life and While My Guitar Gently Weeps.

Let It Be is more juke-box than juke-box musical. You don't have to wait long between numbers as they are virtually incessant. The show is undoubtedly a quality offering, but it's little more than a well crafted trip down memory lane. For foreign visitors struggling with the English language, the show makes for a safe and rather lovely visit to the theatre. It's a nod to the 60s and a celebration of a national culture that's as emphatically English as Shakespeare. If you are after an onstage performance of a CD compilation album, then shows don't get much better than this.

Now booking into 2014 at the Savoy Theatre.