Manchester Theatre News & Reviews

REVIEW - SIX is once again crowned Queen of the castle and will long reign over us!

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We were invited to The Lyric Theatre Lowry, Salford, to see SIX. Read what our reviewer Karen Ryder had to say about this Royal musical...

In this crazy theatre world, which I have made my happy place and my second home, there are shows where you know you’re going to have a good time, and then there are next level shows like SIX where the anticipation, excitement, and adrenaline start way before the curtain rises! SIX just has that magical theatre glow about it, the one that can’t be captured by words, but by being a part of something bigger – in this case - the Queendom! SIX grabs you by the corset, dazzles you with its glittering heels, and crowns you as your own unique Queen. With an eclectic mix of fans old and new royally making their way into The Lyric Theatre, Lowry, the shows palpable energy uses audience members as a pinball machine, pinging its tantalising Tudor vibes between us all. SIX definitely has a life force of its own with an unmistakable “prepare to have your mind blown” confidence that it fully deserves and has earnt through the hard work, dedication, and talent of its writers Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss. A university project that ended up at the Edinburgh Fringe and was performed by their musical theatre society, its appeal was instant and a few months later, found itself making its London debut. A few more months later, the album was dropped, and they pretty much headed out on their first UK tour and haven’t stopped since! From its debut in 2017, first tour in 2018, West End in 2019 plus Olivier nominations and its debut in America, SIX has made its own musical theatre her-story becoming the first West End musical to stream live on Tik Tok! It has been nominated and won endless awards, including 23 awards in Broadways award season - 2 of which were Tonys! And so, all of these theatrical accolades are my defence as to why I may have seen SIX quite a few times! What am I talking about, defence?! I’m sorry, not sorry!

SIX has rightfully earned its throne as one of the most original pieces of musical theatre in the last decade, mixing imagination with historical facts and giving the SIX wives of Henry VIII a histo-remix. Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard, and Catherine Parr are no longer refined to a two-line rhyme but are brought to life in glorious technicolour as they are handed the mic, the spotlight, and control of their own narrative. And they choose to tell it through song in this fierce and feisty 80 minute concert that blows away any notion of them simply being known as Henry’s wives. This is girl power at its finest, each Queen inspired by a modern day iconic pop princess. They power through their stories, showing strength in adversity, empowerment, heartbreak, trauma, prejudice, and a focused theme of how women’s truths are re-written and reframed to fit a man story, or worse, erased entirely. SIX expertly weaves all this together with humour, sass, incredible historical facts, personality, and an electric atmosphere that has every audience member pumped. A world is created where the SIX wives can meet, swap stories about their ex, Henry, bond through shared experiences and celebrate their differences. Things may start out as a competition as to who had it worse, but they soon realise that there is so much more to them than their shared connection to Henry, and so they raise their voices, take their microphones, and rise up to take back control!

The sensationally strong cast of SIX each brought their own brand of fabulousness to their character, creating distinctive moments, styles, and strengths. Madison Swan is Aragon and this Queen demanded our attention with her diva authority, strutting around the stage with controlled ownership and a piping hot set of vocal to boot! Izi Maxwell as Boleyn had a cheeky, chaotic and charming energy that brought out the devil in you. You felt the vibrancy, the playful banter between the cast and the audience lapped it up. Laura Dawkes is Seymour and steals your heart and your tears with her emotional storytelling, collectively making the audience forget to breathe as our hearts connected with hers. It is a beautiful contrast to the previous two solos and brings home the complexities faced by women, then, now, and always. Hannah Victoria as Cleves brought her own brand of confidence and swagger, shutting the haus down with a heady mix of comedic brilliance. This was a sleek and seamless representation of everything that SIX is – a heady mix of her-story mixed up and told through modern ideas and culture. Lizzie Emery is Howard and performed a masterclass in storytelling through song. She achieved the difficult task of recalling a traumatic time through an upbeat pop song to represent that women weren’t allowed to complain. It was compelling, heartbreaking, and made you furious at the injustice’s women have had to face. Eloise Lord is our wise Parr, pulling the whole show together with her observations, warmth, and killer vocals in a song that always catches me by surprise and I find myself unexpectedly emotional. The delivery was spot on, empowering, enlightening and full of oomph, perfectly balancing the old and the new.

With an all female band known as The Ladies In Waiting, the music is stunningly brought to life with a raucous energy fit for any Queen, musicals, or concert fan! They utterly nailed it and if you watch them, you can see their own joy belting out through a soundtrack that has been downloaded and streamed millions of times. I mean, this is the hottest ticket in town for a reason! Paired with the music, the creatives behind SIX continue to show why this show is a global phenomenon. Carrie-Anne Ingrouille’s choreography is slicker and sharper than ever, portraying these individual women with their trials, tribulations, and tenacity! Some moves have become so much a part of musical cult history that the audience are able to join in with them in the megamix finale. Tim Deiling’s lighting illuminates the theatre with as much pizazz and gravitas as any large arena music concert and has an opening as iconic as it comes! As that sensational shimmering light breaks through the curtain, SIX begins! Our Queens are backlit, profiled in silhouette, creating a moment of unadulterated anticipation. That epic blackout follows, timed with the throbbing thuds of the music, as each Queen is then spotlighted in beat with the music. The Queendom has arrived and it means business! On top of that, Gabriella Slade’s costumes have gone down in her-story as some of the most iconic musical theatre costumes ever designed! Each character has its own colour palate and each colour palate has its own story, from black for grief, to pink for youth. Spikes represent crowns and divorce, high necked costumes and chokers represent beheading, with tiny crowns and tiaras representing died and survived. And with each Queen having their own unique look, it is a hotbed of discussion for fans, especially younger ones, as to which is your favourite fashion statement! They fuse Tudor with their modern music icon creating a glittering armour meets girl‑band glam.

Everything about SIX is so delicious. Every second of the show is considered with a rare brand of genius. From the informative, sharp, quick witted lyrics that use intelligent language skills to sell us the story, to the interwoven historical facts, and imaginative cross population with modern culture references, such as a Queen being chosen via a dating app! It is therefore no surprise that the live event cinema screening release of SIX The Musical Live was watched and broadcast on the most screens of any limited release cinema event ever – even beating Taylor Swift’s Eras tour! SIX has found an inspired way to unite our history with theatre, musicals and a wide variety of modern music styles from pop to RnB, and hip hop to name a few. Aragon represents an era of modern divas such as Beyonce and Jennifer Lopez, Boleyn features elements of Avril Lavigne and Lily Allen, Seymour symbolises the big ballad singers such as Adele and Sia, Cleves clocks up the cool rankings via her inner Nicki Minaj, whilst Howard personifies the pop princesses such as Ariana Grande and Brittney Spears, and finally, Parr is influenced by the stunning Alicia Keys and Emeli Sandé. The blending of so many influential musical styles, equally interwoven with Tudor motifs such as Greensleeves, is testament to the popularity and brilliance of SIX. So, no sales pitch needed for our already loyal, Royal fanbase, but for any newbies out there wanting to join the Queendom? Do whatever it takes to get a ticket! May SIX long reign over us, for Marlow and Moss saved our Queens!