Legally Blonde Archive

Review by Donal (Thanks!!!!)

Name of Show: Legally Blonde

Date: 22nd February

Starring: Elle Woods (Carley Stenson – 2nd understudy), Warner (Simon Thomas), Emmet (Alex Gaumond), Margot  (Emma Bateman – 1st understudy), Serena (Nicola Brazil), Pilar (Ibinabo Jack), Callahan (Lincoln Stone – 1st understudy), Paulette (Denise Van Outen), Enid (Suzie McAdam), Kate/Chutney (Dawn Sievewright), Gabby/Stenographer, (Jane McMurtrie – swing), Dad (Gregor Stewart – swing), Mum (Sorelle Marsh), Brooke Wyndham (Tamara Wall).

Theatre: Savoy Theatre, London

Seat: Stalls BB6

Seat Review: Front row, very close to the stage, great view (unless you’re quite small), neck stretch required to see the dogs.

Seat Price: £25 (Lottery)

Visit Number: 26th

Recommend: Yes, one of the best and most entertaining shows on the West End.

Rating out of 10: 9/10 (1 point deducted because of how Denise Van Outen plays Paulette and also as the sets are quite shabby looking).

Describe it in 5 words: Entertaining, Fun, Positive, Energetic, Pink.

Donal’s Review:

It was with great excitement when I discovered I would be in London on the date when Carley Stenson was to be on as Elle Woods in her only scheduled show as lead. The ticket lottery was much busier than usual for a Tuesday – an indication of how eager fans were to see Carley in the lead role. There were also quite a few understudies and swings on this evening too which I feel really gave a new energy and vibe to the show.

For anyone unfamiliar with the show, it’s about sorority girl Elle Woods who is dumped by boyfriend Warner on the night she expects him to propose to her as she doesn’t fit into his plans and isn’t serious enough as he heads off to study Harvard Law. Elle defies all prejudice and gets into Harvard herself as “love never accepts a defeat” and realises she doesn’t need Warner, becomes a great lawyer and ends up finding true love.

During the show’s opening number “Omigod You Guys”, we gave a massive cheer to Carley as she made her entrance through the trap door as Elle. It was immediately noticeable that she was nervous and trembling a bit but also that she looked so natural in the role. She kept looking down at us for encouragement and said afterwards that she was so grateful for all the cheering we gave her. Other than a few little line fluffs, it was obvious that she was going to be a really great Elle.

From “What You Want” onwards she really started to relax and was incredibly funny in the role in particular when shaking her junk and her “so oh oh oh oh much better”. There was also plenty of eye contact with the audience (reminiscent of the days when Sheridan played the role and sadly lacking with Susan). One of the the true tests of how great an Elle is is how she sings “So Much Better” and she really nailed it. She also brought a real vulnerability to the role and you really wanted to cry for her during “Legally Blonde”.

There’s great chemistry between her and Alex Gaumond (Emmet) too, as could be seen in “Chip on my Shoulder” and “Take it like a Man”. She brought the perfect balance of vulnerability and comedy to the role as well as having a great voice. She really put her own stamp on the role.

Playing the role of Callahan was Lincoln Stone. He is by far the best Callahan I’ve ever seen. The role is normally played by Peter Davison. Davison plays the role as a dirty old letch and I don’t like how he plays it. Stone is a much younger Callahan and plays the role with an enormous amount of malevolent charm. He’s hugely charismatic in the role (unlike Davison who is very wooden and looks quite bored) and equally nasty. His voice is really excellent and he displays his vocal talents perfectly in “Blood in the Water”. The scene where he makes a pass at Elle is really quite menacing and you feel a lot more for Elle after she slaps his face and then fires her. With Davison the scene just doesn’t have that same impact and often I’ve heard the audience laugh when he does it which is not the intended reaction!

Special mention must go to super swing Jane McMurtrie who really stole the show as Gabby and the Stenographer. Her boob juggling, stenographer machine stroking, magazine flicking and page turning as well as general face pulling were hilarious. She is hugely talented and has played almost every role in the show at some point. The night before she played 2 characters (Enid and Whitney) in the same scene!

Weaker performances I feel include Denise Van Outen as Paulette though she has improved a bit since she joined the cast. Problem is that Paulette is meant to be a down on her luck hairdresser, not a hooker on the game – as Denise plays her. Her voice is also not as versatile as the alternate Paulette’s (the excellent Sorelle Marsh, whose octave rise at the end of “Ireland” reprise is spine tingling) and she basically plays herself up there. I find it very hard, impossible actually to warm to her or her Paulette.

Also, I find the current Warner (Simon Thomas) quite weak and lacks the charm that the previous Warners brought to the role. His “Well hello Marilyn” after Callahan fires Elle especially irritates me and the chemistry between Warner and Elle seems to be lacking compared to when Duncan and Richard played the roles.

Also excellent are Suzie McAdam as Enid Hoops, Siobhan Dillon as Vivienne (amazing voice but needs to be a bit bitchier in the role), Alex Gaumond as Emmet (perfect in the role and a superb voice), Tamara Wall is an excellent Brooke – an improvement on Aoife Mulholland and of course Chris Ellis-Stanton as Kyle/Dewey.

Legally Blonde really is one of the best, most entertaining shows in London. It’s hugely energetic – especially in numbers such as “Positive”, “What You Want”, “Harvard Variations” and “Legally Blonde remix” and is ridiculously camp. It also makes you think about how quick we are to judge and prejudice people based on their appearances. It still always leaves me with a great big smile on my face after the show ends.

Thanks for that amazing review Donal, I can’t wait to see the show again when I can afford to!!

Did you see Carley? Have you seen the cast since Sheridan left? What did you think?

Legally Blonde tickets can be bought here and merchandise can be bought here.