My favourite 60’s artists…
The Beatles.
Elvis.
Aretha Franklin
Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman.
Haven’t heard of that last one? Neither had I until Save The Last Dance For Me showed us just how big this pair were in the sixties. Even if you don’t know their names, you will for sure know the songs they wrote. The musical, directed by Bill Kenwright, crammed in 28 hits into the two and a bit hour show; including chart toppers such as ‘Teenager in Love’ and ‘Sweets for my Sweet’.
The cast was dusted with star’s including 2014’s The X Factor finalist, Lola Saunders and Antony Costa, from the noughties boy band Blue. Both exceeded in acting and dancing as well as their talent of singing, allowing them to fit in seamlessly with the cast and not stick out as the “celebrity”. For me, Elizabeth Carter stole the show, playing a never been kissed, innocent girl of 17, her relationships with other characters was endearing and she kept her loved-up solos interesting. A job not everyone in the business can manage.
The high energy piece was in full swing right till the end. The cast managed to keep up, despite a few beads of sweat here and there. With plenty of movement and colour the design of the set attempted to compensate for the lack of scene change, particularly in the first half. There also seemed to be a lack of costume change as the characters appeared to be wearing the same outfits for days on end.
The whole show was a honourable tribute to the two composers who always modestly took a back seat. The show was a credit to both them and their work and I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole audience was still singing now.