Venue: The Lowry
Date Reviewed: 14th September 2007

King Cotton is one of the most ambitious and highly anticipated musicals to open in the North West. This brave but flawed piece combines the talents of Jimmy McGovern, Jude Kelly, Ti Green and Ian Brownbill.

The focus is on two competing plotlines; the Lancashire Cotton Famine and the American Civil War. Dealing with slavery and the effect that these barbaric acts had on humanity are big issues; ideal material for musical heaven, right? Well, if you think of how moving a show like Broadway hit The Color Purple can be, you might be expecting more of the same. But there are some problems here, which stop this earnest and well meaning musical from becoming a modern classic.

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Three big hitters have all opened in Manchester, in the past week. King Cotton, the ambitious project, combining the talents of Jimmy McGovern, Ian Brownbill, Jude Kelly and Ti Green opened at the Lowry on Wednesday night. Reviews will follow, as the press were present last night.

Private Lives at the Library Theatre has earned rave reviews, following its press night on Tuesday. Henry V, likewise impressed most critics at the Royal Exchange, following its opening on Monday.

Next week sees the return of the Willy Russell musical Blood Brothers at the Palace Theatre. Also returning, is Brendan O’ Carroll’s comic creation Agnes Brown in Mrs Brown Rides Again, which opens at the Opera House on Tuesday.

By Glenn Meads

Often, when I am sent to review a family play- I end up sitting in someone else’s popcorn, longing for the song n’ dance section to end, then planning my escape route at the end, else I get slowed down by ‘The Borrowers!’

But this past week I had a real treat – as I saw Rufus Norris’ Tintin which has just as much going for it, if you are an adult- this makes a real change, as so often the term ‘family’ show never quite adds up.

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