Review: THE CHER SHOW, Festival Theatre Edinburgh
Review of The Cher Show at Edinburgh's Festival Theatre
The Cher Show is the story of pop sensation Cher's life from childhood through to her big comeback and numerous farewell tours. Three actresses take on the role of Cher which is a fantastic decision. Millie O'Connell plays the youngest Cher, known as 'Babe' which sees her through her Sonny and Cher days. Danielle Steers is 'Star' the Cher that navigates the breakdown of their marriage and Debbie Kurup is 'Lady' which covers her acting career, Oscar win and musical comeback.
Cher is a remarkable woman who has carved a fascinating career path but The Cher Show spends a little too much time focusing on the men in her life. Her relationship with Sonny was crucial to the early years and it is important to highlight the financial control he had over her but there could be room for more about Cher herself and more belting anthems.
As Babe, O'Connell has a fantastic voice but her mannerisms and speech don't quite get the balance right between imitation and parody. The jokes from The Sonny and Cher Show are badly dated and don't land with the audience which makes some of these scenes feel a little awkward.
The songs are great and most of the classics such as "Believe"; "Turn Back Time" and "I Got You, Babe" are featured. Too often the songs are performed as snippets and considering the moments with the most 'wow' factor are the big, bold, belty numbers- they are few and far between. Danielle Steers has the most similar vocals to the original Cher and delivers some jaw-dropping moments on "Bang Bang" and "The Way Of Love". Debbie Kurup has the mannerisms and attitude of 'current' Cher perfected and is a lot of fun to watch.
It's also stunning to look at as Gabriella Slade's costumes are exquisite. The finale gives those that have been itching to get out of their seats and join in the big moment they've been waiting for as the audience are encouraged to sing, dance and take pictures. It's not a perfect show but to not find some joy in this musical, you'd need to have a heart of stone.
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