If you have seen the recent movie version of Rock of Ages, please don’t let it put you off from seeing the show in London.
With a star studded cast, including Tom Cruise, Alec Baldwin, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Russell Brand I had high anticipation that the show had transferred well to the screen from the theatre, but it was awful.
Tom Cruise himself was very good as washed-up rock star Stacee Jaxx, and the young stars Diego Boneta and Julianne Hough were superb, but the rest of the cast hammed it up with poor dialogue and a story that was all too flimsy. Russell Brand had a strange Liverpudlian drawl that turned in to a Brum accent midway through the film with his cockney roots coming to the fore at times – what was he supposed to be doing? It was a perfect vehicle for Brand as Lonny, yet either through poor script or poor acting he failed to hit the mark.
In the stage show it is the narrator, Lonny, that holds the story together and much of the humour is provided by Lonny’s interaction with other cast members and the audience in what is a send-up of the show itself and also a chance for Lonny to take the mickey out of his fellow cast members and also pulling the leg of various members of the audience. I hope you like my sensitive use of the English language but hopefully you get my drift as to the satire used in the show.
Rock of Ages the musical at the Garrick theatre is an over-the-top, comedy musical and not without the moments of high camp and ham but at least it is funny, where the movie badly missed the mark.
Rock of Ages the film sort of fell between too many stools and I wasn’t sure who was their target audience? On the one hand the performers appeared to take themselves far too seriously and were making a plausible fist of portraying rock stars and their entourage whilst the choreography and ensemble numbers seemed far too ‘High School Musical’ and aimed at the younger audience. Yet the content is still, as Rock of Ages the musical theatre show, very near the mark in places with references to sex and scenes in a strip joint so probably aimed at a more mature audience?
The story-line itself has been tinkered with not to much detriment but the over-riding fact is that whilst Rock of Ages the musical show is a riot and very funny the film isn’t a patch on it and just isn’t funny at all.
Both the movie and the theatre show have the great rock soundtrack from the 80’s with the big hair and over-the-top power ballads and rock anthems from the likes of Bon Jovi, David Lee Roth, Foreigner, Whitesnake, Scorpions, Poison and Journey amongst others.
The film does drop a few of the original songs from the theatre show, but if you manage to get tickets for Rock of Ages you can be sure of a rockin’ good time and I promise that you will leave the show with a smile on your face and the tunes tapping a beat in your head. Rock of Ages features some fantastic 80’s rock anthems including:
- Don’t Stop Believin’
- We Built This City
- The Final Countdown
- Wanted Dead or Alive
- Here I Go Again
- Can’t Fight this Feeling
- I Want To Know What Love Is.
Rock of Ages, the five-time Tony nominated musical is now playing at the Garrick theatre in London with tickets on sale through to November 2013.
Rock of Ages – WINNER! Best Musical – 2011 Broadway World West End Awards
Rock of Ages – WINNER! Best Featured Actress in a Musical – Jodie Jacobs – 2011 Broadway World West End Awards
Shows in London has some great deal and prices on We Will Rock You tickets, so book now!
