By Imogen
Link: https://www.stream.theatre/season/96
Available until: Final performance Sunday 11th April at 7.30pm.
Content warning: Disenchanted! contains adult language and content. It tackles difficult subject material including misogyny, race and sexuality. It may not be suitable for people under the age of 16 who aren’t as mature as I am and parental discretion is advised.
Disenchanted! is enjoying a very short run on Stream Theatre starring some of the very best of West End female talent. It has already been seen off-Broadway but I don’t think it’s got any further than that. It’s ridiculous really. It’s a really good musical.
In Disenchanted! ten Disney princesses join together to show who they really are and that not even they really get to live happily ever after. They wish. Hardly anyone really gets to live happily ever after. That’s why divorce was invented.
Dennis T Giacino wrote the book, music and lyrics and apart from the book being on the short side (which doesn’t matter on Stream Theatre but it might be getting in the way of the West End and Broadway runs it truly deserves) he really has got everything perfect. Some of the words are a bit rude so it’s best if you’re mature like me and not easily shocked like Louise but I’m sure most people can cope these days. The lyrics are very clever and funny and they actually rhyme which not many words do these days. (Though I forgive Six for not rhyming. Six is so inspirational it doesn’t need to rhyme.)
The music is all very different. There are lots of different styles and tempi (that means the music is at lots of different speeds.) Some is close to being rock music, some sounds very classical and there is almost everything in between. The songs sound like they’d be fun to sing and dance to and they’re not easy at all, you’d need a singer of very particular talent to sing a lot of the music, especially Snow White’s. I think they would be great drama school audition pieces because of all the different vocal demands and the opportunities to produce really good characterisations.
There are only five Six Queens in this which feels like one too less but considering the talent from everyone else maybe there are some future Six Queens in the cast. Snow White is the star of the show and Jodie Steele is out of this world. She has an incredible vocal range and she seems to be able to sing in every style imaginable which is good since Snow White kind of has to. I’d always thought Snow White was boring compared with Cinderella, Belle and Jasmine but she’s really glam in this show. Jodie is also very funny and every joke and facial expression is perfect. She needs to star in the West End.
Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty both have big roles. Sophie Isaacs looks and sounds really sweet as Cinderella but every now and then she shows you can’t push her around. She reminds me so much of me. She’s brilliant. She’s a very versatile singer too. She can do the sweet light high notes but she can also belt and do a rock vibe. Allie Daniel is Sleeping Beauty and she’s really cute. She doesn’t really have the right look because the lyrics say her hair and make-up aren’t perfect and they so are but I wouldn’t want to appear in public without perfect hair and make-up either. You don’t always have to sacrifice yourself for your art.
Grace Mouat gives probably the most emotional moment of the evening as a really stunning Pocahontas, Millie O’Connell is a very vivacious Little Mermaid and Courtney Bowman sings gorgeously as Princess Badroulbadour who I’ve never heard of but apparently that’s Jasmine’s real name in The Arabian Nights. I think Jasmine is much prettier and it’s a real Arabic name too but Sheherazade or however you spell it was probably running out of names by the time she got to that story. I don’t really understand about those stories. I mean you’re in bed with a man and you want to convince him he doesn’t want to kill you so you tell him a bedtime story? Is that seriously the most fun thing she can think of? Natalie Chua, Shanay Holmes, Aisha Jawando and Jenny O’Leary complete a really strong starry cast.
Disenchanted! is a great musical and you’ll never
get such a good view for £15 in the West End so stream it.
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