Stage: Legally Blonde Bombshell

Andrew Kay catches the West End sensation as it heads off on a national tour and to the Theatre Royal Brighton

In the world of West End musical theatre nothing comes more sugar coated and sparkly than Legally Blonde – or does it?
Based on the Hollywood chick flick sensation, this musical transformation is packaged like the biggest ball of fluffy entertainment to ever hit the stage. Expect Spandex and glitter, expect blusher and highlights, and expect lots of screaming as the girls of a UCLA sorority send Elle off in search of the Harvard man she loves.

And on that level this show more than delivers. It’s fast and furious and fun. It never takes itself too seriously and the company belt out the numbers like a team of cheerleaders on steroids.

The plot is classic Hollywood: girl has man, loses man, fights to get man and discovers that he’s not the man she wants after all. Along the way she transforms from dumb blonde to blonde legal bombshell, uncovers corruption, helps the downtrodden find her man (and dog) and meets the real man of her dreams, but not before giving him a full make-over.

The real joy though is in the score. The songs are simply great, really catchy numbers that you will remember. But above that you have lyrics that are so well written that you will find yourself straining not to miss one witty rhyme or line. Too many ‘musicals’ are merely vehicles for songs, songs in which the content adds little to the narrative of the play. Not here, every song has a strong message and moves the plot along at a rocking pace. Lyrically this is one of the strongest shows that I have seen and heard in a very long time and that alone would steer me towards a five-star rating.

The tour has now started and already the company, headed by Faye Brookes, Claire Sweeney, Ray Quinn, Les Dennis and Iwan Lewis, is getting superb notices, which is hardly surprising. No doubt by the time it reaches Brighton in a few weeks time it will have even more.

I will certainly be back for second helpings of glittering pink fun when it hits the stage of the Theatre Royal Brighton. This is no throw away juke-box confection but a seriously well written and well constructed musical that offers fun and frivolity whilst taking a sharp pop at the whole superficiality of a society where a fake tan and thousands of dollars worth of orthodontic surgery count for more than almost anything else. Of course, true love wins out in the end, and a couple of cute doggies, but hey, this is a musical and one not to be missed.

Theatre Royal Brighton, Tues 13–Sat 24 March
Box office 08448 717 650
www.atgtickets.com/brighton