We Will Rock You

“The year is 2023. Globalisation has taken its toll. All musical instruments are banned. Everywhere the kids watch the same movies, wear the same fashions and think the same thoughts. It's a safe, happy Ga Ga world. Unless you're a rebel. Unless you want to rock.”

We Will Rock You is a lavish rock musical featuring 32 of Queen's greatest hits as well as a spectacular all South African cast (many of them fresh from last year's Chicago).

Written by Ben Elton (writer of series like Blackadder and Thin Blue Line) , the plot might not be the best part of the show, but it is full of hilarious jabs at the music industry. Anyway, most of the audience didn't care too much about the plot, they were there to be dazzled by the sound and drama of Queen's music.

It is a visual feast with weird and fantastical costumes, frantic lighting and huge screens in the background whose constant animations and live feeds give life to this highly artificial and computerised world.

But what impressed me the most, was the quality of the cast. Vicky Sampson is great as the larger-than-life 'Killer Queen', but it was the vocal talents of Helen Burger as Scaramouche that really impressed me. Murray Todd (Britney) and Talia Kodesh (Oz) is also impressive with their spot-on comedic timing and a flamboyant, but highly confident, stage performance.

The all-local band supporting the actors are also top-notch and you won't be blamed if you think on occasion that they are using the original music for backing tracks. But it's all live.