Any of our regular readers will know how much we adore Wilton's Music Hall, not just the place but also the quirky and unusual shows that are staged there.
It hadn't been a good week, we'd had the last bank holiday before Christmas, summer seemed to be over, and my friend had had some difficult decisions to make. So, the invitation to see 'I wish my life were like a Musical' seemed to be just the tonic.
Written by Alexander S. Bermange this delves into the whole vaguely ludicrous world of musical theatre, looking at those who love to perform it and those who come to be entertained. This is an affectionate look though, fun is poked equally at the performers, agents, casting directors, critics, and the audiences including the 'Super fans'. Indeed there's a whole new song about the slightly scary 'Super Fans'.
I wish my life were like a musical was performed by Jennifer Caldwell (Six The Musical), Sev Keoshgerian (Little Women), Rhidian Marc (Wicked) and Julie Yammanee (Bonnie and Clyde), accompanied on the piano with impeccable precision and humour by Alexander S. Bermange himself.
We were taken on a journey from drama school student to full-blown Diva, with all the highs and lows that entails.
All of the performers were excellent, and each got to have their moment in the spotlight, their voices were versatile, and each played to the humour in the lyrics and staging to the maximum effect. 'Diva's in the House' was the stand-out song and performance from Jennifer Caldwell, for me.
Even if you're not a musical person (that in itself is explored in a song), there is so much humour and fun in this show that you really can't fail to be entertained. It's fair to say that 'I wish my Life were like a Musical' really did cheer us both up and left us with big smiles on our faces. Highly recommended.
Venue: Wilton’s Music Hall
Dates: 29th August to 9th September
Time: 7.30pm (Tuesday to Saturday)
3.00pm matinee (Wednesday, Thursday & Saturday)
Running time: around 70 minutes without an interval
Box office: 020 7702 2789
Internet: www.wiltons.org.uk
