Review: LEGALLY BLONDE, King's Theatre, Glasgow

Legally Blonde opens with the upbeat number and never-ending earworm "Omigod You Guys" as Elle Woods' sorority sisters prepare for the news that Elle has become engaged to her beau Warner Huntington III. Much to Elle's dismay, her boyfriend is actually breaking up with her because he feels that going to study at Harvard Law school means he needs to be with someone a little more serious than her.

Naturally, Elle reacts in the only logical way. Frantically cramming for exams so that she too can get into one of the world's most prestigious universities and impress Warner with her new serious attitude. She quickly proves that you can't judge a book by its cover and her smarts and good instincts begin to shine through.

Everything about the show is ridiculous and wonderful. The songs are incredibly catchy with titles such as "Gay Or European?" and "Bend And Snap". The costumes and set have an abundance of pink and glitter but avoid descending into tacky.

Lucie Jones is a sensational Elle Woods. The role is undeniably camp and she plays up the humour and perceived shallowness of the character beautifully. Jones also excels later, when the audience discovers that there is a lot more to Elle than initially meets the eye, playing her more sensitive and loyal side all the while exhibiting powerhouse vocals and flawless choreography.

Rita Simons also makes a fantastic Paulette- Elle's first (and for a while her only) friend in Massachusetts. Paulette is one of the most loved characters in the story as we see her grow in confidence thanks to her friendship with Elle and Simons executed this perfectly. Both Elle and Paulette were joined on stage by real life four legged friends which always goes down well in a production!

To call this musical 'fluff' would do it a dreadful disservice as it is clever, funny and has a great big heart. Legally Blonde oozes cheese throughout- in the best possible way! This touring production can simply be described as pure joy.

Legally Blonde is at the King's Theatre, Glasgow until Saturday 28th April.

Photo credit: Robert Workman

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