★★★★★ Burlesque: A sultry, sizzling and sensational take on the cult film
Based on the cult musical film, Burlesque hit the stage at the Lyceum this week, bringing a touch of glamour, camp and West End magic to Sheffield.
Ali leaves her hometown and heads for the bright lights of New York in a quest to find her mother, Tess. Tess runs a Burlesque club which is in financial difficulties and her ex-boyfriend and business partner, Vince, is determined to sell the club and close it down. Ali quickly finds herself working in the venue and falling in love with bartender Jack. But with the club facing closure, can Ali’s powerhouse vocals bring back the crowds, and will she ever find the right moment to tell Tess that she is her long-lost daughter?
The staging of the show is just dazzling, with a set that feels luxurious, swathed in red velvet drapes and with the action surrounded by a glittering frame of lights which add atmosphere and authenticity to the feeling of being in the fictitious burlesque lounge. The surprises keep on coming, with well utilized projected backdrops and a simply stunning lighting design by Joshie Harriette with beams of light penetrating the auditorium, breaking down the barrier between the cast and the audience and helping to immerse the crowd into the world that they have created.
Racky Plew’s direction keeps things moving at a breakneck pace and lays down layer upon layer of inventive staging which delights and astounds in equal measures. There isn’t even time to catch your breath between set changes, as the curtain descends and the audience is transported to the club with traditional Burlesque style performances, as the characters take their turn in the spotlight; Nikki’s performance in the spotlight is the highlight of these mini-scenes and it was jaw dropping. The musical numbers come thick and fast, and with an almost relentless pace.
The choreography by Robin Antin, Aaron Renfree and Xena Gushart encompasses everything from a full-blown tap routine to the Argentine tango, and from energetic dance to sultry teasing. There are a couple of show stopping moments, especially 'Big' which gives a whistlestop tour of the history of burlesque in retort to Ali’s comment that she thought the lounge was a “strip club”. The number is bold, brash and frenetic. 'Express' and 'Show Me How You Burlesque', both taken from the film, didn’t disappoint with their large-scale production numbers and energy, and 'Bound to You' proved to be a tender moment between the characters of Ali and Jack. With over 25 songs crammed into the show, there is plenty to enjoy.
Gracie O’Brien makes her professional debut as Ali, the smalltown girl with the big voice. A semi finalist on The Voice Kids, she had some big shoes to fill taking on the role made famous by Christina Aguilera, but she absolutely held her own and gave a superb performance injecting warmth and believability into the character, whilst performing the most stunning vocals, hitting every note and blowing the audience away. She was phenomenal and had completely won me over by the end of her first number. Ryan Carter is perfect, channeling his inner Emcee as Sean with personality, wit, and charisma and delivering one of the showstopping moments in the show with his musical number 'Big'.
Tyler Davis gave a very measured performance as Jack, connecting the audience to the character easily, providing some beautifully performed vocals which resonated with warmth and who greatly amused the audience with a watering can, an overgrown plant and a box of cookies – if you’ve seen the film, you’ll know the scene. Davide Fienauri’s turn as Vince was functional but landed just on the wrong side of parody and caricature to naturally make the character the villain, but his performance in 'Tango Bulesco' was great fun.
Finally, Faye Brookes didn’t quite hit the mark as Tess, the club’s owner and matriarch, not because of her performance or vocal talents, but just because she felt very miscast. Her showstopping moment should have come with the song 'You Haven’t Seen The Last Of Me', but her soft and tuneful vocals lacked the edge, roughness and determination of the character going down fighting and ended up feeling slightly underwhelming.
That grumble aside, this show was sexy, sultry, sizzling and sensational and, quite frankly, was the most fun I have had in a theatre for a long time. I had an absolute blast with a show which is an assault on the senses (but in a good way); and as the curtain fell and the house lights came up, I would have happily let them reset the stage and have them start the show all over again.
Burlesque is at Sheffield Lyceum until 31.10.26. You can find details of Sheffield Theatre’s accessibility policy here.
