Review: THE BAND, Bristol Hippodrome

Pop music and musicals make good bedfellows for two main reasons. Firstly, pop music has a kind of duality - a song can mean entirely different things in different contexts - a useful thing for illustrating a story.

Secondly, pop music normally has just the right amount of sentimentality. The Band is a demonstration of how to harness both these qualities and bundle them into two hours of entertainment.

Gary Barlow has had a bit of a chequered past in musical theatre (this isn't the first Take That-based musical). But with The Band, he wisely hands writing duties over to Tim Firth, who has taken the attention away from the story of boy band and focused it first onto a group of obsessed teenage fans and, later, their middle-aged selves.

The result is a story that won't win prizes for its depth or complexity but it's warm, engaging and surprisingly funny to boot. Faye Christall as younger Rachel and Rachel Lumberg as older Rachel are both endearing and likeable. Alison Fitzjohn is responsible for most of the laughs in the second half, but brings welcome touches of humanity to what could easily be a caricature.

The boys themselves (recruited via the BBC's primetime show Let It Shine) make a convincing quintet without being seriously tested in the acting department. They clearly enjoy their race through Take That's famous costumes and dance routines.

Firth, alongside directors Kim Gavin and Jack Ryder, finds a way to show how much people take their favourite artists into their lives. The boys are sometimes seen in concert mode playing to the masses. At other times, we're in a kitchen or school corridor, with the song seemingly written just for that moment.

Jon Bausor's design is a constantly evolving delight. Eschewing the easy conventions for this kind of show, there's real creativity and craft here. Backed by a design team with serious experience in the music industry, the concert sections pulse and vibrate like they should. The show won't look out of place when it takes its place in the West End.

All the hits are present and correct, sometimes handled by the band but most effectively when shared between the band and the characters whose story we are following. "Back for Good" is one such highlight that ties the younger and older characters together seamlessly.

Half the battle with a new musical can be finding an audience. Jukebox shows have always enjoyed an advantage here with a tried and tested soundtrack and fanbase.

Add into the mix that many of Take That's fans are now approaching the age of the characters in the show and you can see why this canny formula could prove successful. As Act I closer "Shine" says, The Band might just want to make you smile, smile, smile.

The Band at Bristol Hippodrome until 28 April

Photo credit: Matt Crockett

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