The icon and legendary singer Cher has finally had her life turned into a stage musical in a modern adaptation directed by Arlene Phillips. ‘The Cher Show’ is currently playing the Edinburgh Festival Theatre until Saturday 15th October.
Millie O’Connell presents innocence, youth and a desire for fame as Babe, the youngest of Cher’s incarnations. We see the pain from Cher being different to everyone else, also the desperation for a life in the spotlight with a partner by her side. This is through Millie’s rather naive performance, which depicts this section of Cher’s timeline perfectly. Millie does well to give such youthful energy to Cher, it is also obvious to see who Millie is portraying with the instantly recognizable accent and tone. Plus Millie looks so much like Cher in the 60s. Although at some points Millie leans on the fringes of a tribute act rather than a well-rounded portrayal. However, as we go further into this timeline, we do see a stronger and more stable depiction of Cher’s life. Especially when it comes to her rollercoaster relationship with Sonny. Millie’s performance of ‘I’ve Got You Babe’ is sublime.
Danielle Steers is incredible as Lady, where we see her delve deep into the darkness of Cher’s life with Sonny, while supplying powerhouse vocals and an excellent portrayal of the legendary diva of Pop. Danielle’s performance of ‘Bang Bang’ is stunning, the talent she showcases in this number alone shows not only her ability to hold her portrayal of Cher but her ability to perform the hell out of divine hits while carrying such deep emotion. Danielle is a glamourous goddess in this production, the supremely talented actress will undoubtedly be gracing our stages for many years to come, if the versatility on show in ‘The Cher Show’ is anything to go by.
Debbie Kurup gives us the presence of a mature, emotional and at points broken older Cher as Star. Debbie’s portrayal is brilliant with the nuance of sass, comedy and great emotion, we truly are taken on a rollercoaster of emotions as we explore the struggles that the legendary singer went through. With this Debbie supplies vocals which at points are arguably better than those of Cher herself. With this the only flaw in the portrayal is a drop of her accent at points. Despite this you truly admire and connect with the popstar and the challenges she faced later in life. There are too many musical numbers to highlight in Debbie’s performance, she absolutely slays each number flawlessly.
Guy Woolf gives a versatile and truly indepth performance covering Sonny (Understudying Lucas Rush), where we see the light but very much the darkness that the corruption of showbiz presents. Guy’s relationship with Babe, Lady and Star helps show the true evolution of the couple’s turbulent relationship. Sonny goes from good guy to an unpredictable unstable man who has the stress of succeeding overtake him, this is done with such realism. Guy’s performance of ‘I’ve Got You Babe’ with Millie is a highlight of his portrayal. It sounds fantastic.
This production features a superb and versatile ensemble bringing energy and divine vocals in each number. The ensemble are as follows; Jake Mitchell (Bob Mackie), Sam Ferriday (Greg Allman, Rob Camilletti, Phil Spector & John Southall), Tori Scott (Georgia), Jordan Anderon, Jasmine Jules Andrews, Carla Bertran, Catherine Cornwall, Áine Curran, Sam Holden, Samantha Ivey, Ingrid Olivia, Aston Newman Hannington, Clayton Rosa & Chay Wills.
Arlene Phillips’ direction of this production is very impressive. Phillips’ reliance of Cher’s hits, iconic costumes (designed by Gabriella Slade), visual grandeur and camp extravagance helps serve a musical that fans of the popstar could only dream for. The flow of this musical is brilliant with movement sequences transitioning the scenes flawlessly; utilising the superb minimalist set from Tom Rogers helping provide a contemporary and visually stunning musical. Rick Elice’s book for this musical is like ‘Jersey Boys’ meets ‘Beautiful’, an edgy telling of Cher’s rise to fame. With it there are some emotional nuances which are sometimes a little hollow in Phillips’ direction. That being said, Elice’s text does over-complicate it’s self with the questionable reasoning behind Star, Lady and Babe not simply being Cher from different times supplying a commentary on her life, or simplifying it into each actress only appearing for the timeline in which they’re featured. The creativity is unquestionable but the execution can seem rather shallow. Oti Mabuse’s stellar choreography delivers complex movement flawlessly bringing ounces of energy into each scene. The only disappointment is a rather anti-climactic tap routine which could afford to feature real tap shoes and a longer routine. However, despite this, the dance routines in this musical are really impressive, especially for a modern musical.
Ben Cracknell’s lighting design is exquisite. It lifts the entire production bringing it to a simply staggering standard. This is the best lighting design I have seen in a touring production for a long time, it has the extravagance as a west end production and really delivers in terms of dazzling the audience during numbers and matching the tone of the scenes unfolding on stage.
‘The Cher Show’ is a bombastic, energetic and staggering contemporary musical which utilizes Cher’s catalogue of hits being performed by the UK’s best theatre performers. This is a brilliant production that is certain to entertain audiences of all ages.
Get your tickets for ‘The Cher Show’ at Capital Theatres here:
https://www.capitaltheatres.com/whats-on/all-shows/the-cher-show/43
Theatre Scotland 
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