I Take That Back!
About 18 months ago I reviewed the musical Never Forget and found the whole experience underwhelming. It was shoddy, tacky and a felt like a complete cash in on Take That’s comeback. Also, because of the influx of juke box musicals, it was just one more too far. The cast were fairly bland and failed to breathe life into their “Fake That” roles.
Since then, the show transferred to the Savoy in London and earned really decent reviews. Fast forward to today and the show has been re-cast and is back on tour. I decided to go along again, following the news that Scott Garnham was cast as José. I had got to know this talented young performer via the show Eurobeat when it stopped off at the Lowry last year.
From the opening scenes, it is quite clear that the producers have taken note of some of the criticism aimed at the show in its early form. The pace is very tight and many of the jokes have been updated to reflect the economic down turn and Take That’s new found mega success.
A show is only as good as its performers and this time around, the producers have assembled a far better cast. Not one of them suffers from being as bland as the originals. Mark Willshire makes the character of Ash more sympathetic than I remember first time round, Adam C.Booth is hilarious as best mate, Jake, Tom Bradley brings charm to the role of Adrian and Scott Garnham has great comic timing throughout. The only weak link is Philip Oliver as he clearly stands back as the others belt out the Take That tunes. Cast as a stripper, he is ok at the comedy but clearly no singer.
Aimee Atkinson brings an air of vulneribility to the underwritten role of Chloe. As for Shaun Williamson as the manager Ron, again, he brings far more than is written on the page.
Sure, the plot is slim and verging on non existent, but there is a real sense of fun evident throughout this energetic show and the ensemble really shine. The song “Once You’ve Tasted Love” still makes me laugh though, as it remains a cheap and tacky interpretation here and quite out of place with the rest of the proceedings.
But, this is one touring show which makes you feel good. Forget your initial reaction if it was like mine and go along with minimal expectations, as you will be surprised. Cliche alert, as “I’m sure, so sure…….”