The Labour Party

TONY! The Tony Blair Rock Opera

Leave a comment

Reviewed by Nikki Cotter

Opening Night verdict ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Co-written by Harry Hill and Steve Brown, Tony Blair (The Tony Blair Rock Opera) examines both the incredible rise and significant fall of Labour’s most successful Prime Minister in a sequence of musical comedy sketches varying from the downright bonkers to the outrageously brilliant.

This witty take on the former MP for Sedgefield won’t fail to raise a smile as political and cultural figures from the period are given a silly and satirical going over. We see a bagpipe toting Alastair Campbell, the coining of the ‘People’s Princess’ Diana, there’s balloon modelling from Peter Mandleson while true to life poor old Gordon Brown’s calls for meaningful change go largely ignored.

Jack Whittle is fantastic as the wide-eyed wannabe Tony Blair, grinning and green as he embarks on his Premiership while a seriously Scouse Cherie (Tori Burgess) utters an ominous “What could possibly go wrong?” as the giddy heights of No.10 are reach as we head into the interval.

This wacky waltz through Blair’s ill-fated premiership is like Ed Balls’s appearance on Strictly Come Dancing, you simply can’t stop watching and the more ridiculous the more riveted you become.

The cast are on fine form, taking on multiple roles throughout, there’s strong support from all with special mention going to Howard Samuels who spectacularly stirs the pot as Peter Mandleson. Rosie Strobel pulls off a brilliant John Prescott reminding us just how little we’d like to mess with ‘Two Jags’ and Phil Sealy shows his brilliant versatility as both Gordon Brown and Saddam Hussein.

The script is off the wall and inventive, while the songs are clever and catchy, some however would benefit from a little trimming to ensure they pack more of a punch. While the show is great fun it does at times linger slightly longer than feels necessary within several of the scenes. The committed cast however work their Labour red socks off to keep the piece moving forward.

This whistle stop tour of Blair’s giddy heights and unforgettable lows is nicely summarised in the final song, ‘The Whole Wide World’ it might not fill you with hope for a better tomorrow but it will give you a jolly good giggle today. Sir Keir take note!

TONY! (The Tony Blair Rock Opera) is on at The Lowry until Saturday 7th October tickets available here.

This House

Leave a comment

This House 2

Opening Night verdict ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Following sell out runs at the National Theatre and in the West End, James Graham’s critically acclaimed political drama has come to visit constituents, canvassing audiences across the country as part of a new national tour.

Inspired by real and incredibly dramatic political events which took place in the houses of parliament between the turbulent years of 1974-1979, This House lifts the lid on the frenzied activities at the height of a hung parliament where every vote counts as the Government attempt at all costs to operate successfully without the safety of a working majority.

Writer James Graham places the action at the very beating heart of Westminster, the Government and oppositions whips offices. These pressured hubs and the entire backbone of the palace as deals are struck, ears are bent and promises made.

This House The born to rule attitude of the Tories is displayed superbly by opposition whips William Chubb, Matthew Pidgeon and Giles Cooper, sneering and entitled for whose Boys club loyalty and a great suit is a must.

The working class roots of the Labour party are perfectly embodied by Martin Marquez, James Gaddas, Tony Turner, David Hounslow and Natalie Grady, for whom compromise is betrayal and defeat is not an option.

The frantic scenes are dominated by boisterous alpha males, bolstering for position with the exception of Natalie Grady taking on the role of Ann Taylor, Grady delivers her role to perfection, strong and sure in what was very much at the time a man’s world.

James Graham’s superb writing highlights frequently the laugh out loud absurdity of the political world, as monumental decisions impacting the lives of the masses are made amid point scoring, archaic and ancient traditions.

This House 1 This House is a true ensemble piece with a fine display of character acting, there is game playing, childishness, flamboyance, passion and genuinely moving moments all wrapped up in an enormously funny script. Jeremy Herrin and Jonathan O’Boyle’s innovative direction ensures the piece is slick and packs the intended political punch. The inclusion of an on stage band adds further depths and pace of the piece ensuring smooth, sharp scene transitions.

Designer Rae Smith’s set combined with Paule Constable’s atmospheric lighting both highlight and mirror the drama on stage. The crumbling & fractured Government being watched by the looming face of Big Ben, forever constant and predictable until one day when like the Government the clock splutters and stops.

This House 3 This House is an inspired and engaging production, the eccentricities of Westminster acted out by the enormously talented cast is genius. Where there is plotting and scheming there is also camaraderie and genuine affection. The superbly crafted characters have exactly the same demons we see today, do they put principles before party in the battle of idealism versus reality? This beautifully scripted piece could so easily be set in 2018, scarily relevant and a sobering testament to the fact that despite the stakes being so high nothing ever really changes.

This House will make you laugh out loud and possibly cry at the state of modern day politics but undoubtedly will entertain. It’s a pacy, penetrating examination of the political world as differences and similarities are thrillingly exposed. A must-see.

On at The Lowry until Saturday 28th April tickets available here. For those who may fancy themselves as a back bencher there a limited on stage tickets available.