SiX – Teen Edition
★★★★☆ Sterling stuff
Assembly Roxy: Tue 10 – Sun 15 Dec 2024
Review by Thom Dibdin
The young queens of Captivate Theatre put in a terrific shift for SiX – Teen Edition, at the Assembly Roxy through to Sunday. And on the way remind us, as if we needed reminding, just how good a piece SiX really is.
The big difference of this production is that the Ladies in Waiting are not a live band here, but a quartet of backing singers. The on-stage band might be missed, although the backing track gives it plenty oomph thanks to Greg Young’s sound, but the four really help add depth to the ensemble of voices on stage.
Freya McGregor, Violet Beattie, Emily Aboud, Tegan Taylor, Georgia Sim and Olivia Eccles in SiX. Pic Malik Tamajul
Otherwise, at least in terms of the material, Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss’s script is so little changed, that you would not really notice. Where the differences lie are in the choreography, wardrobe and design, which will be obvious to anyone familiar with the original.
Here, choreographer Dannielle Logan and costume designer Charlotte Nicholson have excelled. Logan’s strong routines allow the company to show off their steps, while adding a strong dynamic to the piece. Nicholson’s outfits might hint at the original’s in terms of colour, but are very much this company’s own.
The six Queens are also made of sterling stuff. Georgia Sim is a right proper Catherine of Aragon. Commanding and assured as she takes front of stage for the first big number of the supposed competition to see who was most hard done by, in their marriage to Henry the Eighth.
great range
No Way hits all the big high notes full on and allows Sim to show that she has great range of emotion in her repertoire, too, as she drops it down soft and gentle.
If the big opening number Ex-Wives has become an ionic representation of the show, Anne Boleyn’s Don’t Lose Ur Head is one of its most interesting and successful numbers. Violet Beattie gets it just right, combining the flirtatious ‘Sorry, not Sorry’ chorus with big power chords as she describes her ascent into Henry’s marriage bed.
The Cast of SiX. Pic Malik Tamajul
Freya McGregor gets to take it all down and sorrowful for Heart of Stone, the story of Jane Seymour, who died soon after giving birth to the son who neither of her predecessors had been able to produce. It’s a plaintive number and McGregor pulls out all that emotion.
Throughout the whole piece, director Colum Findlay keeps the movement flowing so as to reflect the meaning of what is being sung. It’s particularly clear in ensemble number Haus of Holbein, as the ten singers get to grips with the way Henry chose his fourth wife, from a painting by Hans Holbein which reflected more of Anna of Cleves’ inner beauty than her actual appearance.
Not that Anna had that much to complain about – at least according to her fellow queens, as they make clear to Emily Aboud, who shows just how much Anna relished her status as a divorcee in the heavily deep bass backed, hip hop Get Down. If Henry thought she didn’t match her profile pic and divorced her after six months, she was happy enough in her castle and flirting with Court. And doesn’t Aboud show it.
‘birds and the bees-me’
Less so for Olivia Eccles as Katherine Howard, another who lost her head. Just how much storytelling is in these numbers is not necessarily apparent in the big stage productions. Eccles makes sure that Howard’s exploitation is clearly felt in her big pop rendition of All You Wanna Do, with its ‘birds and the bees-me’ chorus.
The Cast of SiX. Pic Malik Tamajul
Just as the whole piece seems to be breaking down into an unceremonious cat fight, Henry’s final wife, Catherine Parr, brings it all back together. Suitably, Tegan Taylor feels as if she has the most mature voice of all six queens, and her tale in I Don’t Need Your Love sets out beautifully slow and disappointed before building to its climax.
There are a few technical issues to do with the blocking in relation to the lighting – above an obvious mis-step in the lighting cues on the opening night. And there is a strong argument that live music is preferable. But there is little to fault in the production.
gritty fingernails
Indeed, with great support from the four Ladies in Waiting – Robyn Burns, Rhianne McAllister, Elyssa Tait and Emma Swain – this is a thoroughly entertaining version of SiX which, for all its glamour, gets right under the gritty fingernails of the sexism by which these women were bound and despite which they built their own lives. All sung with a bold Scottish accent, this SiX should have local fans of the show rushing for a ticket.
Running time: One hour and 10 minutes (no interval).
Assembly Roxy, 2 Roxburgh Place, EH8 9SU
Tue 10 – Sun 15 Dec 2024
Daily: 6pm; Fri 2.30pm; Sat: 12 noon (Central).
Tickets and details: Book here.
The Cast of SiX. Pic Malik Tamajul
ENDS
Opening night had some lighting/tech issues but the girls never missed a beat and carried out admirably and professionally. Saw it last night again and it was outstanding! These girls are incredible performers and the costumes/choreography is on point! Loved it. Should be a sell-out show!!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️