What Sophie Said

Titanic the musical has made a triumphant return to the West End, taking up residence at the Charing Cross Theatre. A beautiful venue seating up to 265, you feel close to the action wherever you’re seated, which is helped by the fact the actors use the aisle space around the theatre throughout the show. I’ve seen an amateur production of the show before which I absolutely loved, and while I expected a professional production to wow me even more it honestly went above and beyond anything I expected. Let me start by saying Titanic has one of the most stunning scores of any musical I have seen. A bold statement, considering how often I’m at the theatre, but this music really is phenomenal. Entirely sung with only a few moments of spoken dialogue, it’s a rich tapestry of work which builds to create the extremes of emotion necessary when telling such a tale. This cast do that music justice. I will talk about some individuals and songs in more depth, but overall the sound the ca...

How do you revive a classic musical with wit, flair and a feeling of originality? Just ask the creative team of Funny Girl, at the Savoy Theatre. I was blown away. Funny Girl was a show I knew little about, which makes a pleasant change for me as I know most musicals I see inside out before I take my seat. All I knew was the iconic 'Don't Rain on my Parade' - nothing else of the story, the songs or the themes. I went expecting a fantastic show, but was unprepared for just how much I would fall in love with Fanny Brice and her story. I've tried to play it cool and not launch in with my praise for Natasha J Barnes but my goodness, what a star. Effortlessly funny, likeable, charming and with one of the best voices I've heard in a long time, I couldn't imagine a more perfect role for her. I was with her every second, every sideways glance to the audience, every stunning note, every happiness and every heartbreak. In 'Don't Rain on my Parade...

I've taken a while to get my thoughts down on The Maids, because I was left with a very strange mixture of being both absolutely amazed and slightly let down. I've taken time to reflect on that in the hope that my review can now help me sort through those two feelings. The acting: flawless. The overall show? It left me feeling a bit flat. The Maids has a phenomenal cast. Uzo Aduba and Zawe Ashton, as maids Claire and Solange, delivered a masterclass in acting. The characters show vulnerability, strength, comedy and anger, and the relationship between the two women is at times touching at at times very odd, menacing and twisted. I thought this relationship was portrayed beautifully, and multiple times throughout the show I was on the edge of my seat, completely unsure which way their actions would swing. There were also an awful lot of long monologues, which both Aduba and Ashton delivered flawlessly. I'd been expecting great things based on how much I've love...

A few weeks ago, the New Wimbledon Theatre played host to my second viewing of Avenue Q. Currently touring the UK, the quirky, lively and hilarious show is as memorable as when I first saw it four or five years ago. It has a very distinctive style, and is so different to anything else mainly down to the innovative use of puppets. The actors, in blacks, are clearly visible - indeed, some characters have no puppet - but the puppetry and story are so fantastic you completely lose sight of the people operating them. The story follows Princeton, a fresh graduate with big dreams, and the people who live around him in his new home on Avenue Q. Touching on love, sex, racism, alcohol, homophobia and discovering who you are, the show leaves no stone unturned. With songs such as 'Everyone's a Little Bit Racist' and 'You Can Be As Loud As The Hell You Want (When You're Making Love)', Avenue Q is daring, outrageous, and has the audience in stitches. I felt the shock...

Gypsy has been a musical I’ve wanted to see for years, but has never quite been top of my long list of things I want to see. Until I saw Imelda Staunton was taking on the lead. And then the even better news came: BBC4 would be broadcasting the show live from the Savoy Theatre over Christmas. It offered the perfect opportunity to see the show without having to justify to myself the ticket prices, and is something I’m so pleased they decided to do. To be able to see the production on stage as it’s done at the theatre, with audience in situ, but with camerawork allowing close-ups of the actors, was a fantastic chance and one I really enjoyed. I knew very little about the show, except for a single song, ‘Some People’, which I had performed in a show aged about 13. Gypsy, the musical, tells the story of burlesque star Gypsy Rose Lee, but is really the story of her mother, Rose. Focusing on ‘Gypsy’s’ (originally named Louise) childhood for the first part of the show, Ros...

Finally, my dreams of seeing Miss Saigon on stage have become a reality. Having adored the music for years, and sung my heart out to song after song whilst growing up, my expectations were high and my excitement was through the roof. Luckily, the current West End production of Miss Saigon does not disappoint. The Prince Edward Theatre is beautiful, and no expense had been spared on the set. The steps, buildings, fencing and even a helicopter were skillfully moved around the stage, and visually the performance was a treat. I have to start by talking about Eva Noblezada, who played the most stunning version of Kim my childhood dreams could have imagined. There has been a lot of buzz around her in the role, and I can see why. Her voice was truly spectacular, with the beautiful essence of someone who appears like every note is effortless. Her huge songs were phenomenal, but never pushed too far, never a note was strained for, and never did show-stopping notes become ‘shou...

The story of Carole King is quite a story. A fresh-faced 16 year-old who sold a song, married, established herself as one half of a song-writing duo, and years later found herself performing her own music. There’s more to it than that, but I don’t want to ruin the story for when you go and see Beautiful, the Carole King Musical. Because that’s something you really need to do. The soundtrack to this musical is pure brilliance. As the posters proclaim, it contains ‘hit after hit’, and is basically a catalogue of many of the most-loved songs of the 60s and 70s. My aunt and uncle described it as their ‘soundtrack to growing up’. And I, even though I wasn’t born until 1992 so definitely missed out on this era, recognised a good 80% of the songs. I guess that alone says something for the enduring appeal of King’s music. As well as being a fascinating and inspiring story, the musical is excellently put together. The set was relatively simple, with the small piano gliding on and off...