Theatre / Reviews
Review: The Magic of Motown, Bristol Hippodrome
Some of the audience were actually around during tonight’s celebrated era, and plenty were not: but one thing’s for sure, every single person in the crowd at the Hippodrome enjoyed The Magic of Motown.
The concert evening, direct from the States and in town for one night only, was well received from the second it burst into life.
Featuring a cast of eight people and 16 costume changes, the audience were treated to 36 classics from this hugely talented group of performers. Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross & The Supremes, The Four Tops, The Temptations, Marvin Gaye, The Isley Brothers and many more were on the playlist.
The audience were up out of their seats by the second song, and a few numbers later the aisles were packed. There were a few attempts to clear people away from the very front near the base of the stage, but after a while ushers just gave up on that idea as the crowd were gleefully dancing everywhere.
The cast itself were stars in their own right. Leading man Andre Lejaune had great stage presence and his cheeky personality really shone through. Alongside him, Mary Wells, one of the three female performers, had a big bit with My Guy back in 1964, while Marvin Johnson also had a number of successes. The harmonies from the group really were music to everyone’s ears and the moves were slick and timed to perfection.
The only slight let down of the evening were some sound issues, with the music from the live band not always being at a consistent level. Not that any one seemed to really notice: they were all so caught up with this music that took them down memory lane.
The Magic of Motown was at Bristol Hippodrome on Friday, October 10.
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