101 Dalmatians The Musical: Review

If you’re one of millions of dog lovers who thinks love is a four-legged word, then 101 Dalmatians is the musical you’ve been waiting for.

Dodie Smith’s children’s book is most well-known for its Disney screen adaptations: the classic 1961 animation and 1996 live-action version starring Glenn Close as the most wicked of villains Cruella De Vil.

This musical stage adaptation by Zinnie Harrie takes the basic plot of the story and its colourful characters adding some modern twists and a whole new score by Douglas Hodge.

The show opens with a filthy dalmatian stray being taken into a dog’s home where a chorus of caged dogs of all shapes and sizes sing for someone, anyone to take them home.

Who with a heart could ignore their puppy dog eyes? Well certainly not the lovely dog warden Danielle (Jessie Elland – Emmerdale’s Chloe Harris). The poor dog’s smelly state earns him the name Pongo, but when a soapy bath reveals his beautiful spotted coat, Danielle is smitten.

One good turn deserves another, so Pongo decides it’s time to do some rescuing of kind but lonely Danielle. As luck would have it, he meets Perdi and Tom (Samuel Thomas) in the park. A few orchestrated twirls of the lead later and they are all wrapped up in love with a litter of puppies on the way. What could go wrong?

Enter Kym Marsh, setting out a stall to have pantomime companies fighting to cast her as their next and best villain. As fashionista Cruella De Vil, who will stop at nothing to get her unique coat of dalmatian puppy fur, Marsh strikes the perfect family balance between fearsome and funny. Her comic timing hits every time, making for genuine laugh out loud moments. Most importantly for a musical, Marsh, who started out in Popstars band Hear’say, can belt out an impressive tune. Being a new musical none of the songs are instantly familiar, but the live band and strong vocals makes for an enjoyable musical experience that carries the story along with all the fun of a litter of pups.

Charles Brunton and Danny Hendrix bring light-hearted foolery to Casper and Jasper, Cruella’s nephews and hapless accomplishes in crime. But the reason we care so much is because our hearts have been won by the tremendous puppetry that brings the dalmatian family to life.

Linford Johnson and Emma Thornett act, sing and control the puppet strings for Pongo and Perdi making us believe in their joyous, playful leaps as if we were watching real dogs on stage.

But what about the real dalmatian puppy you’ve seen with Kym Marsh in the pre-publicity images? Well, there may just be another surprise to up the feel-good ante.

Oh, my heart melts – take me home quickly to hug my dog.

Runaway Entertainment’s 101 Dalmatians The Musical is at The Palace Theatre, Manchester from 30 July to 10 August 2024 before continuing on its first UK tour.