Review by Beth
Tickets were gifted in return for an honest review
Think you know your Disney princesses and classic storybook heroines? Think again!
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| Left to Right: Ashley New as Hua Mulan, Eliza Bowden as The Little Mermaid, Roshaan Saulnier as Sleeping Beauty, Rosie Napper as Cinderella, Lois Glensiter as Snow White and Jewelle Hutchinson as The Princess Who Kissed A Frog. Photo by Pamela Raith |
Disenchanted! brings a hilarious night of fun as our fairytale females lament the many ways they have been twisted and extorted by the main mouse himself, reclaiming their stories and fighting for the limelight once more. Think Six the musical meets Main Street USA in the UK debut of this hit off-Broadway musical.
Our story opens with our three hosts for the evening; Snow White, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. From the off, the trio command the audience with a combination of killer vocals, beautiful harmonies and an element of shock factor. The three explain the purpose of their show tonight; to remind the audience of their actual experiences and rid themselves of the ‘princess complex’ they have fallen into. With brilliantly designed costumes that strike the perfect balance of being very clear which character is which whilst adding an edgier, modern feel, the response from the audience is immediately electric.
These are characters we all know and love as we have never seen them before. Our compères then go on to introduce princesses one at a time, who all provide their own show stopping number with a focus of their own. First up is Belle, who has clearly gone insane talking to cutlery on the day and dealing with her beastly husband! We see Ariel, who mourns the loss of her tail and her regrets at dreaming of having legs and feet. Mulan has a coming out moment of her own and Pocahontas reminds us that she was just ten years old in her real story! If you can think of the classic Princess, I’m certain their story was involved somewhere, from Jasmine to Tiana and a particular favourite moment of mine came through Rapunzel’s number Not One Red Cent that featured a hilarious Nordic accent and some audience participation! Throughout the show, peppered in were also some wonderful group numbers where the ladies share their trials and tribulations including dreams of tasty food and issues with their
drawn double Ds! Moments of hilarity came one after the other after the other, combined with a fantastic range of original songs clearly inspired by a variety of famous musical acts and styles that allowed for real range both in emotions portrayed and in showing off the stellar vocal talents of the cast. Our show ends with a moment of real female empowerment; yes perhaps a little Level One feminism but one that still needs to be heard time and time again! And whilst the writers may clearly not be the biggest fans of Mr Walt Disney’s productions themselves, their knowledge of the cannon was clear and little Easter egg tidbits were scattered constantly through dialogue, song and even prop comedy (Pinocchio, I’m looking at you)!
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| Rosie Napper as Cinderella and Eliza Bowden as Rapunzel. Photo Pamela Raith Photography |
What really impressed me the most about this production was that whilst this was clearly a comedy show, their was nothing laughable about the vocal talents of our talented cast of six. All six women had INSANE singing skill and acted their socks off, producing vocal harmonies, belty crescendos and smashing every song out of the park. This show is truly bonkers in some ways but this cast- comprising of Jewelle Hutchinson, Lois Glenister, Roshaan Saulnier, Rosie Napper, Eliza Bowden and Ashley New - provide West End level, top tier talent. A roster of names I don’t think we have heard the last of for sure! Each leading lady played multiple roles, bringing different elements to each princess in a very three-dimensional way, whether that be a sassy Snow White, placid Cinderella, flirty Ariel or slightly scary Rapunzel to name but a few! The show also comprised of a small yet mighty female band, performing live on stage, again with incredible professionalism and talent.
On the topic of professionalism, a round of applause must be given to the performers and crew for a slight hiccup on their world premiere in the form of an unavoidable show stop due to audience illness towards the show’s end. The MD orchestrated the stop calmly and once it was safe to do so, the cast picked up where the left off with even more heightened energy and absolute skill, recreating the buzz of an atmosphere and even making the best of their well-timed scripting (‘no Sleeping Beauty, we are running late! We are having technical difficulties’!) It is truly live theatre and these things happen, but for so early in their run I thought it prudent to share what a wonderful job they did in such circumstances, leading to a very well-deserved standing ovation.
This show was truly right up my street and I think will be the perfect show for so many audience members (though definitely those in the 14+ bracket advertised). The show plays at Lichfield Garrick for a short while before moving to the Edinburgh Fringe in the summer where I’ve no doubt it will have roaring success! I truly expect to see this show find a home on the West End or in a touring production in a few years and will definitely be the first to buy a ticket; the country needs to see this show!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Disenchanted! runs at The Lichfield Garrick until Saturday 2nd May 2026. Tickets are available from https://www.lichfieldgarrick.com/events/disenchanted
The show will run at the Edinburgh Fringe in August. For more details and tickets visit https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/disenchanted-the-hit-musical
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| Ashley New as Pocahontas, Roshaan Saulnier as Sleeping Beauty, Lois Glenister as Snow White, and Rosie Napper as Cinderella. Photo by Pamela Raith |
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