The Marvelous Wonderettes

[stevej678]

The highly anticipated UK and European Premiere of Off-Broadway smash-hit comedy musical The Marvelous Wonderettes is being produced at Upstairs at the Gatehouse, Highgate Village, from 9 April until 12 May 2019.

Written and created by Roger Bean, the multi-award winning show opened in New York at the Waterside Theatre in 2008 to outstanding critical acclaim. It takes a cotton-candied musical trip down memory lane to the 1958 Springfield High School Prom, where we meet The Wonderettes: four girls with hopes and dreams as big as their crinoline skirts. The show follows their lives and loves from Prom Night to their 10-year Reunion.

This musical features over thirty hit songs from the 1950s and 1960s by artists such as Aretha Franklin, Neil Sedaka, Connie Francis and Dusty Springfield, including “Stupid Cupid”, “Son of a Preacher Man”, “I Only Wanna be with You”, “Secret Love”, “Lipstick on your Collar”, “Respect”, “Rescue Me”, “Dream Lover” and “Heatwave”.

[singularsensation10]

Saw this show off broadway almost 10 years ago. Wonderful evening of music. I’ll take a trip!

[FrontroverPaul]

This show is now on sale. Booked my preview ticket for the opening night.

I loved Beautiful and also Leader Of The Pack - The Ellie Greenwich Story, which I saw three times at when it was at the Waterloo East Theatre in 2015. I also have fond if distant memories of Stop in the Name Of Love in the late 1980s featuring " The Fabulous Singlettes" so high hopes for this one.

[FrontroverPaul]

Saw this tonight in its first preview. Fun show for anyone who likes 50s and 60s girl singer and girl group music. Essentially a jukebox musical with minimal plot but a very talented cast of four.

First half is set in 1958 at a high school prom, the second half ten years later at their reunion. Some nice humour, a little audience interaction. Impressed by the venue, larger than I expected.

I have just ordered the soundtrack CD , its three sequels, and am currently watching a (not so good) American production of the show on You Tube so a definite thumbs up from me.

[stevej678]

Loved every minute of this tonight. This isn't an in-house Ovation production from Upstairs at the Gatehouse but it's every bit as good.

Two hours of 50s and 60s hits delivered with sensational vocals, stunning four-part harmonies and a whole lot of humour. The cast are utterly sublime. Both in between and during the songs, the show is frequently laugh-out-loud funny. The whole thing is just so darn fun!

There's a lot of audience interaction so unless you want to be directly serenaded with I Only Want To Be With You or berated with You Don't Own Me then the front row of the centre block (and particularly the extreme ends of it) are seats to take with caution!

The show has a week to go at Upstairs at the Gatehouse and will then transfer to the Theatre Royal, Windsor. I'd love to see it again.

Four and a half stars.

[Dr Tom]

I'm going on Tuesday. Very good reviews from my mum who went last week and is usually hard to please (but loves that era of music).

[Dr Tom]

Enjoyed this tonight. Four talented singers.

It wasn’t very busy, but it is a Tuesday in the final week. The cast still gave it their all (and coped well with the responses to the audience interaction).

And wow, if you see this, you have to be prepared to become a character in the show. Usually, that means someone who has wronged one of the Wonderettes. I was very fortunate not to be chosen (but generally they only went for the over 70s).

An enjoyable night with some great music.