Review: THE DRIFTERS GIRL, King's Theatre
The Drifters Girl runs at the King's Theatre until 13 April
The Drifters Girl is a musical based on the life of Faye Treadway, the trailblazing manager of The Drifters.
Kicking off with a musical medley, the male cast of four set the tone for the quality of songs we can expect from this show. The Drifters Girl is loaded with hit after hit such as "Under The Boardwalk", "Saturday Night at the Movies" and "Hello, Happiness".
Miles Anthony DALEY, Ashford Campbell, Tarik Frimpong and Daniel Haswell play the core members of The Drifters alongside an impressive number of other characters. The character swapping is fun to begin with although becomes a little confusing further down the line.
Carly Mercedes Dyer is excellent as Faye Treadwell and has the voice for those big belting numbers. The book for this music does let a brilliant cast down as the pacing is a bit off. The issue here is that The Drifters Girl is a true story and while it is interesting, it isn't sensational. There is some drama with the changing of the members due to various factors and someone trying to seek legal rights to the band name but the storyline definitely takes a backseat to the music.
A strange creative choice in such a small cast is the inclusion of the character listed as "girl" who is Faye's daughter. It's no reflection of Jaydah Bell-Ricketts performance at all but it seems bizarre to have other cast members covering so many areas and this character who adds little to the story. It makes a little more sense to learn that Faye Treadwell's daughter Tina Treadwell had the concept for this musical but her small role seems out of place in the show.
The stage design is brilliant and the scenes where the band are in concert are electrifying. The final musical medley is met with rapturous applause. The Drifters Girl has its flaws but they are outshone by a terrific cast and timeless songs.
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