What a tremendous breath of fresh air. Amid the indefatigable rise of movies cynically re-spun for the stage, this musical adaptation of the 2010 film featuring Cher and Christina Aguilera goes its own eccentric way. With its monster sound, energy and blinding bling, it is no less than Burlesque 2.0.
The original Burlesque brought together Cher’s stadium-sized voice and Aguilera’s “mutant lungs” (to quote a line from the film). Which duo can compare to that? This one, it turns out. You could generate electricity with the combined sound of Orfeh, as burlesque club owner Tess, and Jess Folley as Ali, a small-town singer with a big voice. Ali still blows the roof off this burlesque lounge but the musical is grittier and less sanitised.
