Seconds later flames rise from the front of the stage as the curtain rises on a stadium-style concert. As musical openings go, this has got to be one of the best.

The musical, based on the 1992 film starring Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner, has always been a crowd-pleaser. Sometimes too much so, resulting in news headlines of chaotic scenes in the theatre during the 2023 tour as audience members immersed in the concert-vibe joined in with the songs.

For those who can’t resist a sing-a-long there is a chance after the curtain call when the cast return to the stage for an energetic version of ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’. On opening night, as far as we could see, everyone respectfully waited until that point before jumping to their feet and singing the words back to the stage.

The Grammy award winning soundtrack has always been the strength of The Bodyguard and the musical cements this by packing in even more tracks – 16 in total, many of them instantly recognisable including, ‘Queen of the Night’, ‘I’m Every Woman’, ‘Greatest Love of All’ and the phenomenal hit, ‘I Will Always Love You’.

There is a thrilling story too with plenty of jump scares to keep the audience hooked.  Superstar singer, Rachel Marron is on the cusp of mega-stardom following a much longed-for Oscar nomination. But this dream, as well as the safety of her young son, is in jeopardy from a mysterious stalker set on terrorising her and her family. Her manager, desperate to find someone to both protect his talent and solve the case, hires bodyguard Frank Farmer. But his arrival in the celebrity household is far from smooth.

Here the role of Rachel Marron is played by American musical star, Sidonie Smith, who was the alternate for the part when for a run in Cologne. There is so much expectation riding on this role – whether that comes from the audience’s memories of the late, magnificent Whitney Houston, or singers like Beverley Knight and Alexandra Burke who have taken the stage role previously. Smith captures the diva in Marron and gives some powerhouse vocals, especially in act II. I’d have liked a bit more oomph in the concert scenes and that might come in time as the run settles.

Australian actor, Adam Garcia takes on the role of The Bodyguard with charm and humour. At times there is a strange squareness to his stance that feels comically robotic, but this appears to be a directional choice because all the male actors at times take a similar pose.

The real surprise is Sasha Monique as Marron’s shadowed sister, Nicki. The strength of her voice and the emotion she brings to the role ensures that, unlike her character, there will be no sidelining her talent, as the cheers at her curtain call attest.

Marron’s 10-year-old son, Fletcher also quickly wins over the crowd. There are four young actors playing the role during the tour. On Monday we saw Cale Cole, who at only 10-years-old already has a string of impressive theatre credits to his name.

In all it is an immersive, energetic, crowd-pleasing show.

The Bodyguard is at The Palace Theatre, Manchester from 19-31 January 2026.

The post The Bodyguard: Review appeared first on Quays Life.

The story revolves around superstar Marron and the former secret agent turned formidable bodyguard, known as the best in the business, Frank Farmer (Ben Lewis – Company, the Phantom of The Opera, Annie Get Your Gun) whom she reluctantly hires to protect her from an unknown stalker.

It’s not long until their two worlds collide, and Frank Farmer is willing to die for the woman he is paid to protect. Life is seldom uncomplicated and in this breath-taking romantic thriller we also have a love triangle, as Rachel and her sister, Nikki Marron (Emmy Willow-Bodyguard International Tour-Irving Berlin Songbook) both fall in love with Frank.

The stalker, (Gary Turner- Carlos Diaz in Emmerdale, Nathan Blake – Hollyoaks), leaves us with a shudder every time he appears, and we see him not only in the flesh but on huge projection screens, which show us haunting videos of the stalker. The lighting design is extremely effective in changing the mood and helps create not only the darker scenes but the most poignant romantic ones too.

The foundation of The Bodyguard musical is Lawrence Kasdan’s original screen play, which unbelievably was turned down by studios 67 times, before going on to be a box office smash with Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston, spurning the theatrical production which has been running for 20 years.

While the show is about love found and lost, it is also a show about family and the relationship between, Rachel and her son Fletcher, (played by six actors over the run) which is an extremely close bond. When our diva suspects her son may have been kidnapped, she becomes totally reliant on Frank’s protection, is Frank up to the task? We must wait a little longer to find out.

Burke continues to dazzle us with her vocal ability and range as she belts out the classics effortlessly and we relish each one. There are a whole host of irresistible masterpieces for our delight, including One Moment in Time, Saving All My Love, Run to You, I Have Nothing, Greatest Love Of All, I Wanna Dance With Somebody, All At Once .

The ensemble of extremely talented dancers are a joy to watch and just when we hold our breath in anticipation of ‘that song’… it happens… a platform lifts Alexandra Burke into the audience and there she is, singing one of the greatest hit songs of all time – I Will Always Love You.

A standing ovation develops even before the last notes leave her lips, but it’s not over for us yet, in no time at all, just as the cast are taking their final bows, we are treated to a medley of music and everyone is up on their feet or rocking in their seat, as we have an opportunity to sing and dance, just a little, with Alexandra Burke.

The Bodyguard is at The Palace Theatre, Manchester from 12 December 2019 to 4 January 2020.

The post The Bodyguard The Musical: Review appeared first on Quays Life.