Pop perfection is delivered in the most colourful and fun way via Here & Now: The Steps Musical, now playing at Curve in Leicester. Here’s our review.
If you were tasked to create a Steps-based musical, I bet you’d make it colourful, camp, light, fluffy and fun. Well that’s exactly that its creators have done.
‘Jukebox musicals’ often get accused of being light on content, but this really takes it to the next level. You possibly won’t believe me when I tell you what the plot is. Four friends work in a seaside based Supermarket and embark on a mission to find love before Caz’s 50th birthday. If you’ve seen the tv comedy Superstore, that’s the kind of vibe.
Yes, the staff of ‘Better Best Bargain’s are looking for romance and joy.
You kind of feel like this may have been conjured up in a pub.
You know what though, it really doesn’t matter. Would you really want a plot as thick as Les Miserables set to 5,6,7,8? No, you wouldn’t. What you do want, is a massively fun night out, on the same level as a hen do or Bingo Bongo.
And if that was the creators mission, well… they nailed it.
The staging is electric. To say it’s vibrant is an understatement. Amazing lighting, scenery, staging and costumes toe the whole thing together, but more than anything, it’s about the songs.
The delivery of the music itself is exceptional. Massive, bold versions of Steps hits, performed with emotion, swagger and joy.
Better Best Forgotten, Last Thing On My Mind, 5,6,78, Say You’ll Be Mine, Heartbeat, Summer of Love, Stomp, Tragedy, One for Sorry, Deeper Shade of Blue, Chain Reaction, It’s The Way You Make Me Feel, Better The Devel You Know…. yes, every Steps song you’ve ever heard – and a few you’ve probably never heard – are here. And they are belted out in full glory.
The audience is young, ecstatic, loud… you’d be forgiven for thinking actual Steps were on stage.
If you want to forget about work, life, and just have a bloody good time, this show is just the tonic you need.
The show runs at Curve, Leicester until Sunday 3 May with tickets available at curveonline.co.uk
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