Annie Get Your Gun (Tour – Sunderland Empire)

Irving Berlin‘s Annie Get Your Gun had a script update (by Peter Stone) when Bernadette Peters played the lead in a Broadway revival and it is this version used in the current tour. The score is packed with classic songs including "There’s No Business Like Show Business" and '"Anything You Can Do", it’s like stepping back in time with an old family friend.

Director Ian Talbot sets the musical in a circus tent, giving the show a Barnum feel as Buffalo Bill, played by Norman Pace, takes us through the story of Annie Oakley and Frank Butler, from first meeting until they prepare to marry.

Emma Williams is absolutely outstanding as Annie; from the comedy required by the role to belting out Berlins’ magnificent score, she cannot be faulted. The same cannot be said for Jason Donovan playing Frank Butler. The role is a departure for Donovan, but he fails to impress, leaving Williams to steal every scene, especially noticeable during "Anything You Can Do". There is no apparent chemistry between the actors, making the on stage relationship harder to accept.

If you want to see a family friendly musical this is it, but with a different leading man the show could be unmissable.

Annie Get Your Gun runs at the Sunderland Empire until 7 June 2014 and then continues to tour nationally.