As the end of the summer holidays looms ahead, there is still time to keep the kids entertained before the back to school blues with the perfect fun filled adventure for all the family.
Madagascar the Musical follows on from the billion pound film franchise of the same name started in 2005, featuring the crazy antics and mishaps of some of the beloved zoo animals of Central Park Zoo, New York City.
Madagascar is a simple story of friendship and adventure centring around four best friends. Matt Terry, a former X Factor graduate, stars as the charismatic Alex the Lion and the King of NYC (or at least as far as Alex is concerned).
His best friend Marty the Zebra (Posi Morakinyo) dreams of a better life out of NYC and after an encounter with some bad-ass criminal penguins, hatches a plan to escape. Alex, alongside sassy hippo Gloria (Hannah Victoria) and Melman (Connor Dyer) the hypochondriac giraffe , embark on a chase eventually washing up on Madagascar and stumbling onto the land of the bizarre king Julien, roaming free in the wild for the very first time…
The true success of the show lies in the extraordinary puppetry and creative and detailed costume design which brings the magic of the movie alive on stage. Bursting with colour and high energy performances, the story remains true to the film as all the animals deliver strong vocal performances with slick uptempo choreography (particularly impressive in those heavy furry suits).
The musical numbers may not be the most memorable however they are still very enjoyable. At around 100 mins, the simple plot moves along at a quick pace to keep the younger ones entertained with plenty of action and music from start to finish.
The highlight of the night has to be the hilarious performance from Kieran Mortell as the eccentric and bizarre King Julian. His performance of the classic film favourite “I like to move it, move it” complete with skipping, jumping and even flossing brought the house down. Mortells comic timing and one liners provided the biggest laughs of the night.
Make no mistake, Madasgacar is not just for the little ones. There is plenty of subtle innuendo, humour and impressive performances to ensure the entire family are entertained. Young or old, you can guarantee all will be on their feet for the finale.