Jekyll and Hyde at The Liverpool Empire

It has been two years since Wet Wet Wet singer Marti Pellow last visited Liverpool in The Witches of Eastwick, and now he returns in another musical, Jekyll and Hyde.

Originally based on the books by Robert Louis Stevenson, Jekyll and Hyde tells the story of Henry Jekyll, a Harley street doctor who wishes to rid the human race of carrying out evil deeds. After carrying out experiments on himself, Edward Hyde is born from the inside of Jekyll’s mind, leading to a carnage of murder through the streets of London.

As both Jekyll and Hyde, Pellow seems slow in connecting to the material. His spoken voice, particularly in the first act is very breathy, making it hard to decipher the dialogue. The ex-pop star improves greatly in the second half when Jekyll’s alter-ego is causing havoc in the city.

Sabrina Carter and ex-Wicked understudy Sarah Earnshaw, both excel vocally as the duo's love interests, but there are far too many power ballads in this show for them.

The chorus numbers are the best, though, with an 18-strong cast harmonising with ease which improves the general lacklustre score.

Ultimately this show is laden with too many numbers - many of which don't seem to move the plot forward. It also takes a long time to build any momentum - it is over an hour into the show before Hyde even makes an appearance.

That is not to say that this show is without its merits. A scene where Jekyll confronts Hyde, with the use of a video projection really gets across the argument that is going on within Jekyll and Hyde's head. The big number from this show - This is the Moment - also doesn't disappoint, with Pellow delivering a powerful vocal.

Despite some stand out moments, including the chorus numbers and a duet between the two leading ladies, you can't help feel slightly disappointed in the show as you leave the theatre - even if you are a fan of Marti Pellow.

Anthems - Kerry Ellis and Brian May at the Liverpool Philharmonic

West End singing sensation Kerry Ellis, and legendary Queen Guitarist Brian May brought their new concert tour “Anthems” to Liverpool this week at the city’s Philharmonic Hall.

Supporting their new album of the same name, Anthems showcased the talents of Ellis and May with a 90 minute set which included some of Queens greatest hits, with new lyrics written specifically for Ellis, as well as some of the songs which made her famous in the hit musical Wicked.

The evening started with a support band – Vintage Trouble, who attempted to warm up the crowd for the evening’s events with a mixture of soul and rock. Although very talented, the band didn’t quite connect with the Liverpool audience who were waiting patiently for the main event.

Kerry Ellis has an extremely good stage presence – she, as you would expect of a West End veteran, feels very at home on the stage, and interacts well with the audience. Aside from the outstanding vocals and watching May play guitar with gusto, it is worth coming to along just to see a side of the real Kerry Ellis, as opposed to the characters she has portrayed in London. Many of the songs she performed weren’t just sang, they were acted, which allowed the audience to connect with the lyrics.

There were a few problems with the sound and the equipment. At times, it was difficult to distinguish the words which were being sung as it was too loud, and a problem with the smoke machine meant that Ellis was prematurely covered with mist, which she joked off.

Some of the highlight included many of Queen’s hits – Somebody To Love, Save Me, We are the Champions, We Will Rock You and No-one But You, where Kerry Ellis performed a master-class in singing which yielded an impromptu standing ovation.

The Philharmonic is a strange venue to house a rock gig – especially as the audience are advised to sit during the performance, but by the end of the concert, everyone – young, and old – were on their feet singing along. The unmistakeable highlight of the concert was Defying Gravity.

It seems an off combination, bringing together a West End singer and the guitarist from one of the biggest rock bands the world has ever seen, but it works. During the show, Brian May explained that Ellis audition for a role in We Will Rock You, which he produced, and she blew him away. This led to them collaborating for the Royal Variety Show and producing an album together before embarking on this UK tour.

Fans of Ellis and May alike will undoubtedly enjoy this show. It is only a pity that it wasn’t performed in a standing venue, but as the audience demographic ranges from very young to very old, a compromise had to be made. Ultimately, this is one show you won’t want to miss.

The tour continues around the country, with a stop in Manchester on May 16th.

4 stars

Here is a clip of them performing one of the songs from the tour.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6Ay953L2v4

30 Day musical song challenge - Day 3

Demonstrating how underrated you think a musical is.

This musical was extremely successful on Broadway - it won lots of awards and toured the US for a long time after it closed in New York. In this country it garnered excellent reviews - 5 stars from The Independent's Michael Coveney, 5 stars from Whatsonstage.com's Terri Paddock, 5 stars from Charles Spencer of the Times and a very positive review from Mark Shenton of the Stage.

However, after a successful run at the Lyric Hammersmith, it opened in The Novello theatre in the West End. It survived 12 weeks before it was forced to close due to poor ticket sales.

Although not under-rated by the critics, or by those who had a chance to see it in London, I have put this musical in this section, because I believe it was under-rated by the British theatre going public who didn't give it a chance - those who would rather have gone to see a big musical they could have seen three years later - a la Lion King or Billy Elliott. Because this musical deserved to be seen on a wider scale, but never got an opportunity to. That is why I have picked it for an under-rated musical.

Here is a link to the show.

www.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D_NprKfVNpKA&h=a0c82