BWW Reviews: THE SOUND OF MUSICALS, Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow, December 30 2014

The festive programme for the Royal Concert Hall has featured numerous evenings like this one. It seems like a foolproof plan for excellent entertainment, to take established West End stars, an orchestra backing and a setlist of hits from much loved shows. However, that isn't always the case and believe it or not, I was starting to wonder after several of these concerts, whether I had reached showtune saturation.

Thankfully that was not the case with The Sound of Musicals! The setting really highlights how beautiful these songs are away from the costumes and the fancy sets and The Scottish Concert Orchestra were the perfect accompaniment for showcasing the vocals of the performers.The song selection was slightly more adventurous than other concerts I have seen recently. While the big ones are still featured we were also treated to numbers from Sweet Charity, Matilda, Mary Poppins and Kiss Me Kate.

I had seen Tim Howar perform in Bond and Beyond at the same venue a month ago and while I enjoyed his performance then it didn't come close to showcasing his talent. I thought the applause after he sang Gesthemane was never going to end! We were also lucky enough to have Graham Bickley as a guest singer; his Singin' In The Rain was wonderful and you could have heard a pin drop during Music of the Night.

Summer Strallen gave a pleasant performance in the first act but really came into her own in the second. Her rendition of All That Jazz was outstanding and she seemed to go from strength to strength afterwards. Kerry Ellis was also a huge hit with the audience and performed the obligatory Defying Gravity effortlessly. It really was a treat to hear her belt out Don't Rain On My Parade and As Long As He Needs Me. The group numbers were all excellent and it really comes across how much every singer appeared to be enjoying themselves onstage.

No concert like this would be complete without a medley and we had ones from both The Sound of Music and Mamma Mia. I've said it many a time, but there really is nothing I love more than a musical medley! The Mamma Mia finale really ended things on a high note and the Hairspray encore ensured that not one person remained in their seats!

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