It’s hard to believe six years has passed since Manchester saw the premiere of Ghost the Musical with Richard Fleeshman in the lead. Based on the 1990 film with Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore, this supernatural murder mystery romance already had an...
I’m coming a bit late to the party with this one I know, but when something is this good I don’t think too many people can shout about it or shout too loud. I missed press night because I was in York for the official launch of my latest book with...
The Royal Exchange likes to put a twist on the usual Christmas cheer with its festive production. So it is with its choice for this year, Sweet Charity, a musical whose innocent title belies a seedy world of lap dancing clubs, domestic violence and...
In its Seventies heyday Jackie magazine sold more than a million copies every week, to teenage girls eager to learn about fashion, beauty, pop-music, life and love. Fast-forward 40 years and those same girls are asking the same questions, only they...
There’s always the exception that proves the rule. And when it comes to juke box musicals, Mamma Mia is it. Without a doubt, the feel-good appeal of ABBA’s disco beats has a lot to do with the show’s phenomenal success. But what elevates it above...
When American Idiot was first staged in 2010 it blasted a hole in what audiences had become accustomed to from musical theatre and particularly jukebox musicals, cobbled together from a catchy back catalogue. Six years on and it’s still as...
Joe McElderry was two-years-old when I first saw Joseph in 1993 with Philip Schofield in the lead role. I’ve lost count of the number of Josephs I’ve seen since. In recent years it’s a part usually filled by a TV talent show favourite and in this...
I never had a nanny as a child, but if I did I imagine like all children, I’d have loved one like Mary Poppins. Now, what I’d give for a touch of her sparkle and ability to tidy up in a flash. Spit spot. I never tire of Mary Poppins – the quirky...
I never saw Michael Jackson live, but I imagine theatre was a large part of his concerts. Even his pop videos were events – think Thriller and Billie Jean, which were almost mini-movies. In this sense creating a stage show of his music makes perfect...
What a year it has been for Lucy O’Byrne. After becoming the first classical singer to get to the final of BBC1’s The Voice, she’s now back in Salford in one of the most iconic musical roles for the Lowry’s Christmas show, The Sound of Music. And...
Carmel Thomason