Something Rotten!

 

Review by Paul Towers, 15/7/26

Something Rotten! by Karey & John Kirkpatrick, music & lyrics by Karey & Wayne Kirkpatrick

Directed by Tim Jackson

Produced by Jas Theatricals

At Manchester Opera House til Saturday 19th July 2026

I originally booked to see this show back in 2020 but, of course, Covid put paid to that. So I was thrilled to hear that Manchester Opera House was debuting it, at last.

The script is a delicious mash up of Shakespearean song and dance in a far from accurate depiction of Renaissance England in 1595 London.

The premise is that wannabe playwright Nick Bottom (Jason Manford) along with his brother Nigel (Cassius Hackforth) are trying to emulate the accomplishments of local hero Will Shakespeare (Richard Fleeshman). Nick’s wife Bea (Marisha Wallace) is his rock but aspires to be his equal.

Desperate to write something popular Nick consults with Nostradamus (Cory English) who predicts that the next big thing will be a musical. Cue a fabulous number, A Musical, which spoofs so many musical numbers, old and new, sometimes only a single line but the audience recognised about 90% of the cues.

Will Shakespeare bursts onto the stage as a leather clad pop star, very much channelling Frank N Furter in The Rocky Horror Show and the assembled peasants fall at his feet, much to the chagrin of Nick Bottom.

The set by Colin Richmond is a skewed medieval street giving choreographer Tim Jackson plenty of scope for big dance numbers.

It is a shame it is only in Manchester for a month but there is hope it will eventually transfer to the West End. The soundtrack of the original Broadway production is well worth finding.

https://ptheatre.blogspot.com/