EDINBURGH 2025: Review: MISS CONGENIALITY: THE UNAUTHORISED MUSICAL CONCERT, The Space
Miss Congeniality: The Unauthorised Musical Concert runs at Edfringe until 9 August
Miss Congeniality: The Unauthorised Musical is a brand-new musical from Scottish company Jencapella. It’s a loving tribute to the 2000 Sandra Bullock classic movie about an undercover FBI agent posing as a beauty queen.
Running at just under an hour, this is definitely a condensed version of Miss Congeniality. If you’re familiar with the film, you won’t have any difficulty following but if not, it feels like a bit of a fever dream. Agent Grace Hart is a respected FBI agent but when they need someone to infiltrate the beauty pageant, her colleagues decide she’s the woman for the job. The issue is that she’s less than ladylike and needs a full makeover and coaching for how to conduct herself.
The songs are original, and some are better than others but its a pleasant way to spend the morning. Tracks such as “Glide”, “Miss United States” and “Hail to the Queen” are all interwoven with the plot.
Miss Congeniality is a highly quotable film and none of the iconic lines have been missed here. The cast are good but a real highlight is the person playing pageant coach Victor Melling. He has incredible stage presence and really confident delivery.
It’s not a perfect show but it has real potential as a new musical if given a bit more polish.
Reader Reviews
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