The Bodyguard The Musical: Review

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West End sensation The Bodyguard The Musical is now touring the UK. From Monday 4th to Saturday 30th December 2023, this Olivier nominated show is at the Alexandra Theatre in Birmingham. Laura headed to the Alex for opening night to see if this iconic show lived up to all the hype.

About The Bodyguard The Musical

Based on the Oscar nominated film from 1992 that starred Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner, The Bodyguard, directed by Thea Sharrock with book by Oscar winning Alex Dinelaris, had its world premiere at the Adelphi Theatre in London’s West End and was nominated for four Olivier Awards. It has since had sell-out tours both in the UK and abroad. In the current run of the show, multi-platinum Australian recording artist Emily Williams stars as Rachel Marron.

Emily is joined by Emmerdale and Hollyoaks star Ayden Callaghan as Frank Farmer, with Emily-Mae as Nicki Marron, John Macaulay as Bill Devaney, Graham Elwell as Tony, James Groom as Sy Spector, Marios Nicolaides as Stalker and Phil Atkinson as Ray Court.  The role of Fletcher will be shared by Ryo Appadu, Kaylen Luke, Manasseh Mapira and Sam Stephens.

The cast is completed by Alexandros Beshonges, Kayne Gordon, Jack Hardwick, James-Lee Harris, Kalisha Johnson, Samantha Mbolekwa, Liam Morris, Abbie Quinnen, Charlotte Scally, Yiota Theo and Marco Venturini.

The story

Former Secret Service agent turned bodyguard, Frank Farmer, is hired to protect superstar Rachel Marron from an unknown stalker. Each expects to be in charge; what they don’t expect is to fall in love. Fans of the movie should NOT expect a scene for scene remake as it was very different but still great fun.

A romantic thriller, The Bodyguard features a host of irresistible classics including Queen of the Night, So Emotional, One Moment in Time, Saving All My Love, Run to You, I Have Nothing, I Wanna Dance with Somebody and one of the biggest hit songs of all time – I Will Always Love You.

The Bodyguard The Musical: Laura’s Review

The first thing you need to know about The Bodyguard The Musical is that the staging is incredible. It’s extremely inventive with amazing use of lighting and pyrotechnics. From the get go, you are drawn into the atmosphere of this energetic production.

The whole cast are hard-working, dynamic and vibrant with great energy and cast cohesion. That said, there is usually one performer who steals the show and this was no exception. Look out for the absolute star in the making that is Sam Stephens as Fletcher. At only 9 years old, Sam absolutely owns this role – and the stage as a whole.

The other standout performance was Emily-Mae as Nicki Marron. Her effortless vocals, penetrating emotion and engaging stage presence kept the audience captivated for every moment she was on stage.

The Bodyguard The Musical is wild, camp, high-impact and utterly show-stopping. Whitney Houston’s hits belted out on stage at the atmospheric Alexandra Theatre are enough to drag anybody back to the early 90s with a smile on their face, even if you weren’t there first time around!

The Bodyguard The Musical FAQs