Adam Garcia and Sidonie Smith in The Bodyguard (photo Paul Coltas)
The Bodyguard (The Musical), The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham.
For those that haven’t seen the movie (who hasn’t seen then movie?!) it’s the story of former Secret Service agent turned bodyguard, Frank Farmer, who is hired to protect pop superstar Rachel Marron from an unknown stalker. It was originally written in the 70’s as a vehicle for Steve McQueen and Diana Ross but didn’t happen. Fast forward to the 90’s where it was picked up by Kevin Costner who starred in it alongside an already hugely successful Whitney Houston where it catapulted her to even greater heights. The film was the second highest grossing film of 1992 (only losing out to Disney’s “Aladdin”) and the soundtrack went on to sell 45 million copies – the biggest selling soundtrack EVER (Kevin Costner hand-picked Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” for Whitney to cover which was a stroke of genius).
The film transfers perfectly to the stage. The action is non-stop and even though you probably know what’s going to happen it’s thrilling. The role of Rachel is played by the commanding Sidonie Smith who bursts onto the stage with the fantastic “Queen of the Night” in a performance reminiscent of Beyoncé or Tina Turner. Sidonie’s voice is fantastic. Whitney’s songs are famously hard to sing but Ms Smith sails through them without even breaking a sweat. When she finally sings “I Will Always Love You” (the one we’ve all been waiting for) it brings goosebumps. Taking on Frank is Adam Garcia who plays the part perfectly. There’s a hilarious scene at a bar where he tries his hand at karaoke which the audience absolutely loved. They are ably supported by the beautifully voiced Sasha Monique as Rachel’s envious sister Nicki in an absolutely gorgeous performance. She has has some vocal highlights with “Saving All My Love For You” and the beautiful “All at Once”. There is also a stunning duet between her and Sidonie of “Run To You” which is a standout. A special mention should also go to James-Lee Harris who played the stalker so menacingly, as well as Mason Dyett the young boy that played Fletcher with such confidence.
The star of the show however is the music. Alongside the Oscar nominated songs from the movie there are NUMEROUS songs from Whitney’s back catalogue. In my opinion some of the best pop songs ever written. They are glorious to hear and lend themselves wonderfully to the storyline.
Hit, after hit, after hit.
4 stars. Houston, we have no problem here.
