Review by Benjamin Lamb
Friday night in Melbourne seemed to be the night to catch theatre – with multiple venues in our East End district showing blockbuster musicals, it’s the time to be a fan of all things song and dance. For me, Miss Saigon is a show that’s always flown under the radar. Prior to seeing the show, I couldn’t name a single song. But that was all set to change. The show kicked off with a blockbuster number ‘The Heat Is On’, and the energy was palpable – we were all immediately drawn in. This wasn’t your everyday musical. It was fast paced, this opening number, but luckily there wasn’t a sour note on stage, so the enjoyment kept getting larger and larger. From her first note, it was clear that Abigail Adriano is the perfect performer, through her portrayal of Kim, she was born to be on that stage. Throughout the first act, which was all sung through, the score needs to be commended, it had a little bit of everything. Once the first half finished up, the audience had murmurs of ‘what is this’, ‘that was phenomenal’. Act 2 was just as jam-packed as the first and featured arguably the best scene I’ve witnessed on Melbourne stages. I won’t spoil it, but let’s just say it features a helicopter. Another highlight was the young character Tam, who immediately became a fan favourite, the child receiving many awws throughout the crowd. It continued with mind-blowing moments, and each of us walked out of the theatre knowing we had experienced something special. This was highlighted by the applause at the end, with no background music, every person was standing up, a tear in their eyes, and applauding with such vigour, knowing that this wasn’t just a show, it was an experience.
Image Credit: Daniel Boud