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| Loren Hunter - Zelia Rose Kitoko - Deirdre Khoo - Kimberley Hodgson - Chelsea Dawson - Giorgia Kennedy in "SIX" |
SIX The Musical : Theatre Royal – Sydney
Book, Music & Lyrics by Toby Marlow & Lucy Moss
Directed by Lucy Moss & Jamie Armitage – Associate Director – Sharon Millerchip
Choreographed by Carrie-Anne Ingrouille – Associate
Choreographer: Freya Sands
Costumes designed by Gabriella Slade – Associate Costume
designer, Nigel Shaw
Set Design by Emma Bailey - Musical Direction by Claire
Healy
Lighting Dessigne by Tim Deiling - Sound Design by Paul
Gatehouse
Presented by Presented by Louise Withers, Michael
Coppel and Linda Bewick.
Theatre Royal, Sydney 25th October until December
28th 2024.
Opening night performance on 25th October
reviewed by BILL STEPHENS.
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| Loren Hunter - Chelsea Dawson - Kimberley Hodgson -Deirdre Koo - Zelia Rose Kitoko - Giorgia Kennedy in "SIX". |
Experimenting with possibilities for a different form to traditional
musical theatre they hit upon the idea of telling the story of the six wives of
Henry V111 as it might have been communicated by an all-girl vocal group at a
pop-concert.
Little could they have imagined that this concept would morph
into a global phenomenon spawning a soundtrack achieving a ridiculous 32
million views on TikTok, and which, after two previous Covid-interrupted
sold-out seasons in the Sydney Opera House, and a national tour, would be returning to Sydney for a season in
the Theatre Royal, which judging from the
response of the first-night audience, is
set for its third sold-out Sydney season.
Not only is SIX brilliantly conceived and
impressively mounted, it is also performed by, and a stunning showcase for, the
talents of six prodigiously talented, triple-threat performers who play the
wives with arresting solos, superb group harmonies and flawless execution of Carrie-Anne
Ingrouille’s arresting choreography.
As Henry’s six wives, they compete for the position of the
band’s leader by trying to prove which of them had the worst experience at the
hands of Henry.
Their competition all takes place in a brilliantly lit
Tudor-inspired setting designed by Emma Bailey, and accompanied by a classy,
all-female band consisting of Claire Healy (Keyboards), Kathryn Stammers (Drums),
Danielle Colligan (Guitar), Ann Metry (Bass).
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| Deirdre Khoo - Kimberley Hodgson - Chelsea Dawson - Loren Hunter -Zelia Rose Kitoko - Giorgia Kennedy in "SIX'. |
Every member of the cast is on stage for the full duration of the show, costumed in glittering futuristic steam-punk-with-a-Tudor-twist outfits designed by Gabriella Slade and modelled on those of modern-day pop princesses, among them Beyonce, Sia, Adele, Rihann and even Celine Dion.
Each costume holds clues to the status of the various wives.
Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard wear chokers to signify their beheading. Jane
Seymour’s black and white corset alludes to half-timbered houses. Anne Boleyn
wears a green costume to reference the myth that Henry V111 composed
“Greensleeves” which becomes a recurring motif thoughout the show.
Of the original Sydney cast only Loren Hunter remains, reprising
her original role as Jane Seymour. Hunter brings a warm voice and natural
elegance to the role which makes her pensive solo “Heart of Stone” a stand-out.
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| Deirdre Khoo in "SIX". |
Deirdre Khoo is a delight as Anne Boleyn determined not to
let anyone forget she was the first wife to lose her head. Kimberley Hodgson is
a defiant Catherine of Aragon capturing the attention of the audience with the
first of the wive’s stories with her blazing rendition of “No Way”.
Zelia Rose Kitoko makes good use of the multi-faceted skills
honed as an Internationally acclaimed burlesque artist for her portrayal of
Anna of Cleaves lighting up the room with her solo “Get Down”, while Chelsea
Dawson as Henry’s fifth and perhaps least relevant wife, Katherine Howard,
provides a cheeky account of her many romantic encounters with “All You Wanna
Do” before she too is beheaded.
Finally it is Giorgia Kennedy as the empowering Catherine
Parr, who, fed up with all the arguing, questions the point of the competition
by recounting her accomplishments independent of Henry with “I Don’t Need Your
Love”.
Inspired by Catherine’s argument, the wives realise they
didn’t need Henry’s validation and band together for the rousing finale “Six”
in which they re-invent history to tell
how their stories would have turned out if Henry hadn’t been involved.
With its superb production values and electrifying
performances SIX is an intelligent, high octane, tightly choreographed
ensemble show which can be enjoyed on many levels. Every member of the
exceptional cast together with the band, is on stage for the entire playing
time and, depending on your knowledge of Tudor history, you might even find it
informative.
Images by James D. Morgan - Getty Images
This review also published in AUSTRALIAN ARTS REVIEW. www.artsreview.com.au
