UK Theatre Network

“Never Forget” - the hit musical with the songs of Take That

“Never Forget” is the type of musical where to get the most enjoyment out of it, you have to be a Take That fan and you have to believe that the five guys on stage are actually the real members of Take That.  Sadly I am neither a fan and I believe I was watching five actors.  That said it’s a well performed piece. 

As with all pop shows, the story is pretty thin – a guy sets up a tribute band, the lead singer is more talented that the rest of the band, an r & r lady comes and wants to sign him to her record label (bizarrely before their first gig and within a two week rehearsal period!), the band manager isn’t honest and pockets the money offered to the lead guy... But then this show isn’t about the story, it’s about the music.  For non-Take That-ers like me, some of the settings for the songs and some of the costumes are, frankly, bizarre.  Suddenly in one number rain starts coming out of the sky (read, of course, fly floor) for no reason at all, other than, I am reliably informed, because that’s how the Take That video was, even though the song doesn’t mention rain once.  I was bemused.  In another song, they are wearing the most ridiculous costumes in all shades of red – again, I am reliably informed, because that’s what Take That did in the video of the song.  Thank goodness, or else I’d have thought the designer had had some kind of breakdown!  All of which poses the question, if you are taking something out of context and giving it its own story, should you then try to re-create the music video of the song?  And if so, should the only people who come to see the show therefore, be die-hard fans of the band in question?  And should you even attempt to take it out of context?  Which is possibly one of the reasons why Mamma Mia and We Will Rock you are so successful as they are out of context and don’t try to recreate what the original bands did, therefore not cutting out an entire slice of revenue creating audience.

What I found most amazing was the amount of screaming the, majority female, audience did.  Its musical theatre not Take That!  Its five actors – hitherto out of work – doing a job!  I really was in the minority by not really wanting to stand up and dance to the, obligatory, mega-mix at the end.  Maybe it’s me.  Maybe I’m an old stick-in-the-mud.  But surely a mega-mix should be a momentum thing, and make everyone want to get up and dance, such is the furore the evening of magic has created?  Surely it should be something that has to be built up to and is spontaneous, not something that is expected of the audience at the end of the show?  Of course we had to stand up as we couldn’t see anything, but sometimes I wonder if the first couple of rows full of excitable fans didn’t stand up, whether anyone else would actually bother.

As I said, there was nothing wrong with the performances.  In fact, some were brilliant.

  I wonder what the exceptional talent of Aimee Atkinson is doing touring the country, when really, she should be in the West End leading a cast?  She showed exactly why she won the “Voice of Musical Theatre” competition.  I wish Piers Morgan would come and see her, and then he might stop banging on about the middle-aged woman trying to sing “I Dreamed A Dream” and propel the amazing Miss Atkinson to star-dom.

Tom Bradley is surely a star in the making.  His portrayal of Adrian was brilliant.  Keenly observed and very funny. 

Teddy Kempner as Ron Freeman, the band manager, gave, as expected, a solid performance.  There were no bad performances so to single anyone out is possibly unfair to the rest of the cast.

Would I recommend you go and see “Never Forget”?  To be honest, only if you’re part of a hen party or are into Take That.  If you’re not and you’re sober, you might wish you’d spent your money on something more suitable to your taste.  I always question when we are told in the title of the piece that it’s a hit – surely if it was that good, we’d know it was a hit without being told...

“Never Forget” – plays Milton Keynes Theatre until Saturday 6^th June. www.miltonkeynestheatre.com. Box Office: 0844 871 7652.  There are tour dates booked until December – full details including videos, photos and audience reviews can be found at www.neverforgetthemusical.com. 

Reviewed by Catherine Brian at Milton Keynes Theatre on Tuesday 2nd June 2009.