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Theatre Review: Save The Last Dance For Me (UK Tour)

Save The Last Dance For Me review (UK Tour): It’s back to the British seaside of yesteryear in this foot-tapping new musical from the creatives behind Dreamboats and Petticoats.

Save The Last Dance For Me review by Katey Thompson, September 2016.

Save The Last Dance For Me review

Save The Last Dance For Me review

Save The Last Dance waltzes you back to an era of typical British seaside holidays, with candy floss, ice creams and rock and roll. The production, written by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman, surrounds you with the instantly recognisable songs from bands of the day, including The Drifters, Elvis Presley, Ray Charles, Ben E King and Booker T and the MGs.

The show opens with Jennifer (Lola Saunders) and Marie (Elizabeth Carter) planning their first summer holiday without their parents in uptown Lowestoft. They have wildly different ideas of what their perfect summer holiday would be and find anything but what they had imagined. Saunders (Ex X-Factor 2014) brilliantly plays the older sister Jennifer who spends most of her time trying to shield Marie from being hurt by the rush of first love. The girls set off on their jaunt to Lowestoft with word of caution from their parents, where their paths cross those of the American Airmen Milton (Antony Costa from boy-band Blue) and Curtis (Wayne Robinson). The glitz and glamour of the Airbases band and bar thrill the girls greatly and enhances their holiday.

Save The Last Dance For Me review

Save The Last Dance For Me review

Curtis and Milton croon their way through the 1950’s and 60’s music sets, setting feet tapping and fingers drumming. Unfortunately Milton’s snake-hips failed to thrill as much as expected and he was greatly overshadowed by the passion in Wayne Robinson’s performance as Curtis. The vocal and musical performance by the shows band was excellent, covering a range of styles including rock ‘n’ roll and acapella. The singing performance of Sackie Osakonor as Rufus stands out tremendously and was fantastic to hear. Lola Saunders’ strength of voice carried the big numbers easily and was in contrast to that of her little sister Marie, perhaps let down by poor sound engineering on the night. The bands versatility moving from blues to rock and roll to jazz inspired hits was impressive, especially the two tenor saxophonists who also played Mum and Dad.

Save The Last Dance For Me review

Save The Last Dance For Me review

This is an emotional rollercoaster of a ride, from the initial flush of true love through to the realisation that true love never runs smoothly. The audience greatly enjoyed the show and were dancing in the aisles as they played the musical’s well-known title track ‘Save The Last Dance For Me’.

An enjoyable evening’s entertainment that will appeal across the generations.

Save The Last Dance for Me review by Katey Thompson, September 2016.

Save The Last Dance for Me is running at the New Victoria Theatre in Woking until 24th of September 2016.

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  1. Pingback: Theatre Review: Save The Last Dance For Me (UK Tour) | Box Office Collections

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