We Will Rock You London – Show Review
We Will Rock You London has been on my list for many years. I have been to London a lot over the past 10 years, and every time I went to London either on business or leisure I always said I would go and see the Queen show, We Will Rock You at The Dominion Theatre London. But, I never got round to going until this August when visiting London on a brief weekend trip.
You cannot miss the Dominion Theatre where We Will Rock You London s playing, as there is a large statue of Freddie in his classic pose
Originally when I heard that the Queen songs I loved had been turned into a musical I was very sceptical and even a bit “How can they do this”. So I didn’t know what to expect – but hundreds of thousands of people couldn’t be wrong about this award-winning show in its 12th year.
As I entered the Dominion, where We Will Rock You London is playing, I was met with a “Wall of Queen” – I was in Heaven. Freddie playing on the PA System, photos of Fred and the band on the walls. I spent almost 30 minutes walking and looking at these great photos. Everything from Freddie’s “Bonnie baby” photo to Live at Wembley. I got really caught up in this and the show hadn’t even started.
I even bought a Queen T-Shirt with the Classic Queen Logo. Plenty of Queen merchandise available to purchase!
(Above) Me and the statue of Freddie – (Below) the lobby with photos of Queen adorning the walls.
There are plenty of Queen related photos and items to look at before the show starts, so get there early.
We went into the auditorium and got ready for the show. The Stage is amazing with a fantastic emblem of Queen on the front waiting for the show to start.
The Show … and what a show
The show started and from that point, I was hooked. We Will Rock You is a Queen fest of music wrapped around a good story and great characters. I just loved the 2 lead characters. The female lead is one of the best I have seen in any show. She has such character, such a “don’t mess with me” attitude and it really comes across. It is a wonder that that character has not been nominated for some sort of award (maybe she has?) … anyway, I am getting distracted.
The premise of the We Will Rock You is that it tells the story of a group of Bohemians who struggle to restore the free exchange of thoughts, expression through fashion, and of course live music. It is set in a distant future where everyone dresses, thinks and does the same (you can see some of this already in modern fabricated bands). Musical instruments and composers are forbidden, and rock music is all but unknown.
The show starts with the young people of earth being denied expression through live music but Galileo Figaro has different ideas. He hears stuff – he hears the music. On meeting Scaramouche or “Scary Bush” he finds someone who has similar ideas and between them, they try and find Brighton Rock … no spoiler alert here so
In the middle of the show, there are 2 very tender moments where Freddie is remembered, Only the Good Die Young and Days of Our Lives are sung and I challenge any person to keep a dry eye here as it is sung with such sincerity and feeling. You may and try to keep things under control but the music is so powerful that you can’t help being affected by those songs.
By the time We Will
Followed up by a rousing rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody all in all it is like going to a Queen concert. It really is a Kind of Magic!
It is an excellent show – I really enjoyed it … 10 times better than I could have expected.
I will certainly go back and see it again.
The Freddie Mercury Suite
Before I left the Dominion Theatre I spotted this sign for the “Freddie Mercury Suite” (with a picture of Freddie beside it) – I dropped down to the room but a member of staff said there was a private function using the room.
Maybe next time I will be able to report on this suite, as I’m sure it is a treat for any Queen fan to have their private function, perhaps Birthday, special event or even corporate event (see if you can convince the accounts department) at The Freddie Mercury suite.
Well done to the Dominion, the We Will Rock You London cast and the excellent live Band (by the way Spike if you ever need a keyboard player, like when you go on holiday, drop me a line!!) for making this such a well-rounded show.
Unfortunately, now, in 2019, the We Will Rock You show in London is no longer running, but it continues in other countries around the world. I have held this We Will Rock You review on this page for historical reasons,
Dominion Website: http://www.dominiontheatre.com/theatre/
Book tickets to We Will Rock You London – Click Here
Follow We Will Rock You London on Twitter @wwrylondon
Have you been to the show? What do you think? Who is your favourite character?
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