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Thursday 16 September 2010

Dreamboats and Petticoats







I can’t believe that I had never heard of Dreamboats and Petticoats before I went to see it last night. And so I’m guessing perhaps lots of other people haven’t either. The show is full of classic 1960s hits, sure to get you tapping your feet. And despite being born twenty years later I still recognised nearly all the songs as if they had been in the charts yesterday. Just goes to show pop music was definitely more catchy back then.


The narrative is very predictable and exists to thread around the songs, there is little imaginative about it. The acting too lacks sparkle. The reason for going to see this show is the music. As we sat down we found that we were, BY FAR, the youngest, in fact almost everyone around us was over 60. They all loved it and it seemed to be the oldest audience members that were first up on their feet to dance!


Now is the time to see Dreamboats and Petticoats as currently Tony Christie stars in the show as Phil and 'Older Bobby'. Christie is very entertaining and has a surprisingly powerful and in tune voice. The daft song that made him famous, ‘Is This the Way to Amarillo?’, is featured towards the end of the show. The audience went wild for it! I guarantee there will be at least one song that you recognise, some of my favourites were: Shakin’ All Over, Teenager In Love, Let’s Twist Again, At The Hop and wonderfully lyrical Roy Orbison songs that act as a small motif throughout. I couldn’t help singing along, which I’m sure annoyed the people either side of me.


Bad boy Norman is played by Ben James-Ellis who I have previously seen in 'Hairspray' as suave Link Larkin. Lorna Want is sweet as Laura, and is by far the most convincing character on stage. The story follows her quest to win over the boy (Bobby) and win the National Youth Songwriting competition with him. This is an energetic, light-hearted show, with nearly forty songs played live with a band. Dreamboats and Petticoats has a silly story and bad puns, but I still found it fun to see and dance along to.


Book tickets here.

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