REVIEW: Hairspray at Mayflower Theatre, Southampton

January can be a miserable month. Christmas is over, the weather's atrocious and everyone's waiting for pay day. However, I defy anyone to see Hairspray at the Mayflower and not leave with a smile on their face!
By The Newsroom
Published 23rd Jan 2018, 09:09 BST
Updated 23rd Jan 2018, 09:17 BST
The cast of HairsprayThe cast of Hairspray
The cast of Hairspray

Based on the 1988 film of the same name starring Ricki Lake, this upbeat musical is full of fun with bright colours, bold choreography and catchy tunes from start to finish.

After a successful run on Broadway, the film was remade in 2007 and John Travolta and Zac Efron were among the stars cast. This latest tour does both movies every bit of justice.

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Rebecca Mendoza delights as Tracy, never more so when pining for hunky Link Larkin. I Can Hear the Bells was a highly amusing character performance.

The audience went wild for Matt Rixon and Norman Pace as Tracy’s parents, particularly in Timeless to Me.

Whilst Layton Williams and Gina Murray impressed vocally as Seaweed and Velma Von Tussle respectively, the song of the night went to Brenda Edwards as Motormouth Maybelle singing I Know Where I’ve Been. Her spine-tingling rendition of the stirring number reminded the audience why she was the last woman standing in 2005’s X Factor semi-final. With that voice, it’s a wonder she didn’t win.

Fans of the musical, stage and screen, won’t be disappointed.

Until Saturday.

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