1980 musical theatre favourite, Fame opens in a new reincarnation which Keith Jack (Nick) says "feels like the iconic film and series which made Fame great" tomorrow (26th July) at the Manchester Palace Theatre, before continuing it's tour. Featuring memorable songs such as Think of Meryl Streep, There She Goes, I Want To Make Magic and of course the title song Fame, the musical tells the real-life version of breaking into the performing arts and confronts many of the struggles young adults face, "we're not here to sugar coat it" says Mica Paris.
I was lucky enough to see the amazing cast in their penultimate day of rehearsals as they gave us a sneak peek into the show and whet out appetites for what's sure to be an energetic, thrilling show.
Choreographer and director, Nick Winston introduced the show and set us up to hear and see a few numbers. First up a full-out rendition of There She Goes performed by Stephanie Rojas (Carmen) and the cast. From the first moment they began, the energy was infectious and it's genuinely thrilling to see such talent on stage, Rojas is feisty as the Latina who dreams of being famous and I already anticipate her performance as being outstanding. Also notable is the fact that there are a number of actor musicians featured throughout which add to the real life feel and really transports us to a vivacious theatre school. Jorgie Porter exclaimed how excited she is to be performing in her first musical and how "it's constant all the time", Keith added that Nick's aim with the show is to make it fast paced and to feel like New York in terms of being ever moving and full of verve.
Keith Jack gave a truthful rendition of I Want To Make Magic whilst Molly McGuire was hilarious as and lovable as Serena, it will be lovely to see their relationship play out on stage. When asked about the show Keith told us that it's so special because "the cast and director and the entire team have made this electric, buzzy show" and hopes audiences will "be able to relate to a certain character and latch onto to something in the story."
Jamal Kane Crawford's performance of Dancing on the Sidewalk tired me out just watching! Full of energy he completely commanded the space. Alongside Mica Paris the pair create a realistic, but heightened portrayal of a student and teacher who are at odds. Paris' performance of These Are My Children left us all in awe at her effortless vocals. A lovely thing is how supportive the cast are of one another, all cheering each other on and embodying the family feel of being in school together, something which I think will definitely translate to the whole production. When chatting to Mica, Keith and Jorgie after the performance, this was even more evident and they all echoed that the team feel and talent of everyone is what makes the show so special for them.
The title song of Fame features the iconic lyric "remember by name". When asked what they would like to be remembered for I was met with semi-silence as it's a pretty deep question but each person had a lovely, heartfelt answer. Jorgie would love to be remembered for "making a fun situation out of anything", Mica would like to be remembered for "showing anyone that no matter what people tell you, you can be what you want to be and you should do what you feel". Finally, Keith told us a lovely story about his grandad who consistently made people happy and how it inspired him to do workshops for people to try and make them happy; so he would like to be remembered for "bringing light to people... although I'll probably be remembered for being Scottish!"
Keith rounded off with: "I think people will come to the show and get what they expect, plus even more" so if you want all the energy, excitement, romance and pure storytelling from Fame, plus even more then book your tickets for the 2018 UK tour.
Post by Editor, Olivia Mitchell
photo credit: Tristram Kenton
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