This isn’t a sponsored post.
BrumHour saw Unfortunate at the invite of Birmingham Hippodrome.
For Brum Radio’s Interval Theatre, Allie Dart spoke about playing Sebastian in this touring production of Unfortunate. Listen Below:
By Dave Massey twitter.com/BrumHour
This adult production contains VERY strong language. VERY STRONG LANGUAGE!
Review: Unfortunate at Birmingham Hippodrome
⭐⭐⭐⭐Filthy and heaps of fun!
Directed by Robyn Grant, music by Tim Gilvin with lyrics and book by Robyn Grant and Daniel Foxx
Set against the backdrop of Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Unfortunate is a flipside story in the style of Wicked. Shawna Hamic is Ursula and this is her side of events.
We see flashbacks to Ursula’s childhood and her romance with future undersea King, Triton (Thomas Lowe) leading up to the events of The Little Mermaid film, then see the film events through a different lens.
This is welcome return for the Fat Rascal production which was previously performed in Birmingham Hippodrome’s Patrick Studio to 200 punters each time. Being thrown onto the huge main stage of Birmingham Hippodrome allows this production to breathe, and play to 1,500 people. As a fringe 80-minute show it played as a whirlwind but here we really get chance to delve into the story, and this version of it is even more rewarding. There is even time for some extra dance numbers.
The story is still really very naughty, and some parents made the mistake of bringing their kids, (It does say 16+ only unless you are happy for f-bombs and worse to be said in front of your kids.. (No?? Didn’t think so.)
The large single set looks like two levels of a ship stolen from Peter Pan, with sliding doors which don’t always want to slide, plus crazy paper mache props. And somewhere some poor gamer is missing 200 led lights and a Trident staff they got from Temu during COVID!
Vocals and performance are excellent throughout, Shawna Hamic is perfect as our ball-busting leading lady, River Medway shines as a very Essex version of Ariel, with Thomas Lowe playing an excellent hybrid of Prince William and Prince Harry as Triton weighed down by the power of becoming a ruler! Allie Dart, once more scene-stealing chaos wherever she goes as both Sebastian and the chef, especially when playing the two characters in the same scene.
Filthy and heaps of fun! Unfortunate is at Birmingham Hippodrome until 13th April 2024, before continuing to tour, including a stop in Wolverhampton from 11th to 14th July 2024. Book tickets for Birmingham Hippodrome here: birminghamhippodrome.com/whats-on.
