Review by Amelia
Tickets were gifted in return for an honest review
Kerry Ellis is perhaps one of the UK’s most recognisable musical theatre stars, with career defining credits like Les Misérables, Miss Saigon, My Fair Lady, Cats and more. Being the first British actress to play Elphaba in Wicked on Broadway, Ellis has cemented herself as one of the best in the business. Following a fantastic concert at Drury Lane with Rachel Tucker and Louise Dearman at the weekend, Ellis took to the stage at Cadogan Hall with the Fulltone Symphony Orchestra for a night of iconic overtures, movie themes and show stopping musical theatre tracks.
The Fulltone Orchestra, lead by conductor, Anthony Brown, is a fifty-piece orchestra that has worked with Ellis in the past and provides an incredible array of music across many different genres. It’s never short of fascinating to be able to watch an orchestra as a musical theatre fan, as they’re typically hidden underneath the stage. The passion from each member was evident here and it made for an excellent performance. Highlights included overtures from Chicago and Mary Poppins, and the Out of Africa theme.
It’s no secret that Kerry Ellis could sing ‘Happy Birthday’ and make it spectacular, and so this evening was filled with some exceptional vocals, which coupled with the orchestra, were amplified to the max. She revisited some of her most memorable characters in performing ‘I Dreamed a Dream’ and ‘Memory’, and brought the house down with a set of James Bond themes. Her act one closing number was ‘Don’t Cry for Me Argentina’, with a couple of jokes being made about staying in the building and not having time to go up to the balcony, which I was so convinced she would do.
The set list was cohesive and worked well, with some fun interludes from Ellis about the songs she was singing. She was joined by Jemma Brown for a lovely mashup of ‘Happy Days Are Here Again’ and ‘Get Happy’, after Jemma performed ‘Moon River’ and ‘Don’t Rain on My Parade’ on her own. Jemma has performed in various professional musical ventures, working with the Fulltone Orchestra in The Golden Age of Hollywood tour. Jemma shows clear admiration for Ellis and their voices were magic together.
The highlight of the evening for me came when Ellis announced there had been a competition on social media to give someone to chance to sing with her and the orchestra. Ellis stated that they had been inundated with entries but had chosen a girl named Paige and they would be singing ‘A Million Dreams’ from the Greatest Showman together. This duet was absolutely incredible and Paige is a star in the making. Ellis guided her through the song and you could see she was genuinely proud of how well she did. This heartfelt moment was so special and it was obvious how much it meant to Paige to get this opportunity. I hope we get to see her back on stage in the future.
With credits like BBC Proms in the Park and the Royal Variety Performance, it’s safe to say Kerry Ellis knows how to put on a good show. Her concert, ‘Queen of the West End’, tours the UK from September to November and tickets are available now. This concert is not the first time Ellis and the Fulltone Orchestra have collaborated and I sincerely hope it’s not the last.
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Kerry Ellis heads out on an extensive UK tour from September - November 2025. Visit https://kerryellis.com/ for full tour dates.
The Fulltone Orchestra play shows throughout the year, visit https://fto.org.uk/ for dates and venues.
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