Review: Burlesque the musical is Manchester's hottest ticket - this is why

It was guaranteed to be a sizzler of an opening night for Burlesque the musical - with summer finally arriving in Manchester and the Opera House feeling just about as hot as an oven for the occasion.

Even without the mid-June swelter, this musical is the hottest ticket in town right now - selling out faster than hot cakes after this premiere run was first announced. And the clamour for tickets continues.

This show is based on the 2010 movie Burlesque that, given it starred the iconic duo of Christina Aguilera and Cher, has taken on a cult-like status with fans. Could a musical version, penned by the film's creator Steve Antin, measure up to that?

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Well, preview shows in Manchester over the past week would suggest it has. Performances have prompted giddy hysteria from the first through the doors with many fans hailing it the "best musical ever".

There's been a flurry of bookings for its return run in October too. So I had high expectations walking into opening night.

It's not hard to see why audiences are being dazzled, as from the opening blast of strutting dance moves and the film's iconic Welcome to Burlesque belted out, you can see this is a production that is going to fire at you with all guns blazing.

There's a dazzling stage set with plenty of ladders and height that the excellent ensemble use to the very best effect through the big numbers, and it means that all the audience are getting a belter of a view of the action whether in the stalls or up in the gods.

Naturally, given the burlesque artform is at the heart of the action, there are plenty of risque and cheeky outfits for the both the male and female dance stars on stage.

The main thrust of the plot is based on the movie, albeit with a fair few plot changes that give it a different sort of energy for the stage. It follows Ali, a smalltown girl in Iowa, with one heck of a big voice.

Former The Voice Kids winner and X Factor star Jess Folley not only takes on the role of Ali in this show, but in the spirit of Christina, has written songs for it too.

She has an unbelievable voice and this musical allows her to really use it.

We are introduced to Ali as a waitress in her late mother's cafe bar, but she discovers a letter from beyond the grave with the bombshell news that she must seek out her real mother, Theresa Richardson, at an address in New York.

And so off Ali flies to the Big Apple, only to discover that the address on the letter is at the raunchy Burlesque club, owned by the feisty Tess (Theresa), her long lost mum.

Walking in the footsteps of Cher is one heck of an ask, but seasoned Broadway legend Jackie Burns is just the woman to do it. Her Tess gives nods to Cher's characterisation of Tess but also brings a warmth to the role allowed by the new mother-daughter storyline here.

She mother hens the girls in her club, including the pouting prima donna Nikki (Nina Ann Nelson) who thinks she rules the roost, and isn't afraid to sabotage anyone who thinks otherwise.

Until Ali well and truly steals the show one night, cue a virtuouso performance of Tough Lover to round out Act One.

Youtube and RuPaul's Drag Race star Todrick Hall takes the role of Sean, Tess's best friend and confidant from the movie, and makes it all his own in this show.

He, like Folley, has written a host of songs for the stage version, including the exhilirating What Are Clothes and Big as he owns the stage in the Burlesque club.

He brings the laughs in every scene he's in with effortless panache, and personally I'd have him in every scene possible (just like his character jokes at one point as he shoos Ali off stage). He's quite simply a theatrical force to be reckoned with.

The show also reimagines the love story at the heart of the film, between Ali and the club's barman Jackson (Michael Mather) who gives her a place to stay at the start of her Big City journey.

Their romance is perhaps a tad on the sugary side rather than saucy (although you do get a bit of raunch when they, ahem, consummate their love). Although I was unconvinced by the contrived drama at the end of the show when Jackson throws an over-the-top hissy fit about Ali not telling him about Tess being her mother. But perhaps that's me being picky.

Either way, I think I was also expecting a tad more sexiness overall in this show, but I think that may well come with the more performances they all get under their belt. But its an undeniably enjoyable romp with high production values - never more so than at the glittering, confetti-strewn finale.

It features all the big numbers fans will know and love from the movie (highlights include Express and Show Me How You Burlesque, naturally), and they're danced and sung out on stage with huge gusto.

I've no doubt audiences will continue to lap it up here in Manchester, and on opening night there was a universal standing ovation.

And the good news is if you've not managed to bag a ticket for this run of shows, there's a whole month of them when it returns in October.