Six The Musical Review | The Live Review London

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, I’m sure you’ve heard of the hit show Six The Musical. From Tudor Queens to Pop Princesses, the six wives of Henry VIII take to the mic to tell their tales. Remixing five hundred years of historical heartbreak into an 80-minute celebration of 21^st century girl power. The Queens may have green sleeves, but their lipstick is rebellious red. Now moved into their forever home at Vaudeville Theatre I finally got around to seeing the critically acclaimed show.

Six The Musical allows the six wives of Henry VII! to come together to tell their side of history. Or should I say herstory. The premise of the show is a live competition between the Queens to see who suffered the most. And with adultery, miscarriages, church reformation, the expectation of male heirs, death and beheading, there was a lot of competition. Each Queen takes centre stage to break down their personal experiences with Henry in song. The show is not only upbeat, engaging and a fun night out, it’s also educational about each Queen.

Each Queen pulls inspiration from modern day singers and opening the show was Jarnéia Richard-Noel as Catherine of Aragon. In the style of Beyonce and Shakira she sings No Way about her refusal to accept the end of her marriage. An upbeat and energetic song that Jarnéia brings flawless dance moves, great vocals, and a feisty character to. Courtney Bowman was up next giving an outstanding performance as Anne Boleyn, inspired by Lily Allen and Avril Lavigne. Bringing all the gutsy and cheeky vibes, she had me in hysterics and I loved her song Don’t Lose Your Head.

Next up was Dance Captain and Super Swing Collette Guitart stepping into the role of Jane Seymour. Remembered as the one he truly loved Jane Seymour died after giving birth to her son Prince Edward. Collette gave a stunning and heart-breaking performance of Heart Of Stone which got me a little choked up. Following this number is a group satirical trance number which pokes fun at beauty standards. It essentially compares Henry’s disappointment of Anna of Cleves in person compared to her portrait to a Tinder catfish.

Anna of Cleves, played by Cherelle Jay, was definitely the Queen who lucked out when it came to Henry VIII. Disappointed in her appearance, like he was such a looker, Henry divorced Anna and left her with a healthy settlement. He made her an honorary member of the royal family, and she lived a good life following this. Her song Get Down takes inspiration from Nicki Minaj and Rihanna and shows how good she had things.

Next up was Sophie Isaacs in the role of Katherine Howard, the so-called promiscuous Queen. Known for being used and abused by those with power her song starts as a celebration of sex appeal. It takes a turn though when she realises how she is just objectified and used by the men in her life. Her song All You Wanna Do was actually my least favourite of the night. Nothing to do with Sophie’s performance as the girl can bloody well sing, but I just couldn’t get to grips with the song. It was like two opposing songs trying to come together to create one piece and it just didn’t work for me.

Last but no means least, Hana Stewart took the stage as Catherine Parr for her turn in the competition. But this is where things took a turn as Catherine doesn’t want to be defined by her relationship with Henry. She sings about her love for Thomas Seymour, the man she would have rather married than Henry. It also touches on the things that she did, like writing books and encouraging education. She wants the Queens to know that they can stand up and be more than just Henry’s famous wives.

The show ends with a group number where the Queens reimagine their lives and imagine what could have been. Anne Boleyn could have been writing lyrics for Shakespeare and Anna Of Cleves could have moved to Haus of Holbein. Jane Seymour could have had more kids and started a family band. Six The Musical gave me more of a concert vibe than a musical, but it was a great show. The energy never dips, and all the Queens are extremely talented, keeping the audience highly entertained throughout. On Monday the new cast of Six The Musical take to the stage so I am very grateful I was able to see these incredible women during their final week. Bravo! Book your tickets now