A Knight’s Tale The Musical Review | Opera House | Manchester
- Frances
- 9 minutes ago
- 2 min read
A Knight’s Tale has been given a karaoke rewrite, moulding together your favourite pop tracks to cram the musical with sugary hits, but the show’s outstanding set and choreography more than make up for its familiar jukebox soundtrack.
Jokes and lances fly across the Opera House theatre as the 14th-Century tale based on the 2001 film has been stylishly adapted for the stage. We follow peasant William (Andrew Coshan) as he hopes to change his stars by posing and training as a knight for the chance to win love and money at a jousting tournament. With the help of friends Roland (Emile Ruddock), What (Eva Scott) and writer Chaucer (Max Bennet), the group set out as William's trainers and wingmen/woman against shoo-in, Count Adhemar (Oliver Tompsett). Former queen, Meesha Turner’s (Six) belting vocals are a welcome treat as William’s romantic interest, with the cast dressed by Six costume designer Gabriella Slade for their reformed medieval threads.
The fabulous cast are plucked from all corners of the theatre world, with Bennet performing as Macbeth at The Globe, Tompsett previously working on &Juliet and Ruddock in Hamilton. Taking inspiration from all your favourite musicals, writer Brona C Tilley also syphons from Rock of Ages, Rocky Horror and Six to stitch together the cheeky, high in spectacle musical. Some songs selected have already been used in other musicals, tracks like We Will Rock You, Holding Out For a Hero and a Whitney Houston classic play alongside Adele, S Club and A-ha for an altogether entertaining soundtrack.
The songs picked help make A Knight’s Tale one of the better-made jukebox musicals out there, even if it does suffer from an over-stuffing of songs. Placed into every scene, the comedy comes from the lyrics and their questionable placement, which don’t always fit the bill, but are all enjoyable to hear played out. The light comedy is lifted by Matt Cole’s intense choreography, impressive props that range from mounted horses to fireproof orchestra pits and the ever-changing set pieces that keep this high-energy comedy in motion. Director Rachel Kavanaugh and set designer Tom Rogers ensure the show is worth the price of admission alone with a live band playing above the two-tiered stage to ensure there is always something new to grab your eye.
Although its script feels a little dated, A Knight’s Tale the Musical throws everything and the kitchen sink into its production just to see what lands a laugh. Promising a good time, the cast’s infectious enthusiasm goes a long way to making the jokes feel fresh, but the show’s production is top tier, injecting duels and jousts that are genuinely impressive and original stunts made for the stage.