Sister Act – A Divine Musical Comedy, Birmingham Hippodrome, 13 May ‘till 18 May 2024, then touring. 4✩✩✩✩ Review: David Gray & Paul Gray.

Sister Act – A Divine Musical Comedy, Birmingham Hippodrome, 13 May ‘till 18 May 2024, then touring. 4✩✩✩✩ Review: David Gray & Paul Gray.

“A heart-warming and polished iteration of this solid, well put together show.”

A fun show, full of wit and sparkle, but with a big heart, and an important message about the need for friends and how they can change us for the better.

Landi Oshinowo gives a powerhouse and suitably larger-than-life performance as the improbably named Deloris Van Cartier. Deloris is a would-be nightclub singer who ends up in police protection, hiding in a convent. Oshinowo plays the culture clash of the brash and blowsy Deloris, a fish very much out of water in the hushed environs of a cloister, for every laugh available. She also sings the pants off every musical number she comes across.

Sue Cleaver delivers some killer lines as the acerbic Mother Superior who is horrified by Deloris’ disruptive presence. The relationship between the two characters as they move from animosity to mutual respect gives the show its overarching dynamic.

But this is very much an ensemble show packed with strongly drawn and quirky characters who all have their moments in the spotlights. Eloise Runnette shines as Sister Mary Robert. She has a psychological story arc of her own as she grows in confidence and develops the strength to determine her own life. Her delivery of ‘The Life I Never Led’ is one of the standout moments of the evening.

The rest of the Nuns are all well delineated. Rather than a uniform troop of holy sisters, we get a team of individual, rather odd-ball characters with their own stories to tell. Indeed, this is true of the whole cast. It’s a quality that gives an interesting texture to many of the big production numbers where everyone is doing the same choreography, but bringing their own unique physicality to it.

Alfie Parker, as Eddie Southern, Deloris’ police minder - and eventual love interest - brings to life a role that can otherwise seem like a bit of an after-thought. He gives an emotionally and vocally powerful rendition of ‘I Could be that Guy’.

‘Sister Act’ remains a sturdy show, well-crafted and tightly put together. Menken’s music, which alternates between conventional show-music and witty homages to the Motown sound, serves the action and characters well. The big laughs are never far apart, and the madcap penultimate section gives way to a truly heart-warming and gloriously over-the-top finale.

Cast

Mother Superior – Sue Cleaver

Deloris Van Cartier – Landi Oshinowo

Sister Mary Robert – Eloise Runnette

Eddie Southern – Alfie Parker

Curtis Jackson – Ian Gareth Jones

Sister Mary Patrick – Isabel Canning

Sister Mary Lazarus – Julie Stark

Monseigneur O’Hara – Phillip Arran

Sister Mary Martin of Tours – Kate Powell

Sister Mary Theresa – Jane Ashley

TJ - Harvey Ebbage

Pablo – Michalis Antoniou

Joey – Callum Martin

Michelle – Esme Laudat

Tina – Amber Kennedy

Clemont – Joseph Connor

Creatives

Composer – Alan Menkin

Lyrics – Glenn Slater

Book – Cheri Steinkellner and Bill Steinkellner

Director – Bill Buckhurst

Choreographer – Alistair David

Designer – Morgan Large

Lighting - Tim Mitchell