As you probably already know, I love a good night out at the theatre. And a couple of days ago I headed to Nottingham’s Royal Concert Hall with my mum to see a musical that’s been on my ‘to-see’ list for quite some time now: The Bodyguard. The musical is based on the 1992 film starring Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner, and for today’s post, I’m going to be sharing my thoughts on it with you guys here on my blog. So, why not pop the kettle on, sit back, relax, and read all about it. I promise you won’t regret it.

WHAT IS THE BODYGUARD ABOUT? 

For those not familiar with the plot line (where have you been hiding!?), the story follows American pop star and single mother Rachel Marron, who is forced to take on extra security in the form of former secret service agent Frank Farmer after receiving anonymous threats from a stalker. To begin with, Rachel doesn’t know about the threats and just sees Frank as someone who is there to make her life difficult. But, as the story progresses, she finds herself falling in love with him, making it difficult for him to protect her. This allows the stalker to get super close to Rachel, creating quite the mess for her and her family.

MY THOUGHTS ON THE BODYGUARD 

I have to admit that when I first saw that The Bodyguard was on at The Royal Concert Hall rather than The Theatre Royal, I was a little bit confused. But from its explosive start, I soon realised that parts of the show were made to look and feel like you were at an actual pop concert, which made it the perfect venue for the show.

The role of Rachel Marron, made famous by the incredible Whitney Houston, is brought triumphantly to the stage by Alexandra Burke, former X Factor winner and Strictly Come Dancing finalist. Alexandra has been involved with The Bodyguard musical since 2014, and her experience, knowledge of the role, and passion for the stage all come together to produce an absolutely knockout performance. This girl can sing. And I mean, really sing. She makes the stage her home and it’s clear to see why. She thrives up there, and the audience feeds off her energy. She doesn’t do a copycat performance of Whitney Houston either. There are similarities, of course, but she makes the songs her own without losing that magical Whitney sparkle.

Frank Farmer is played by the very commanding Benoît Maréchal who brings the same brooding, dark energy to the stage as Kevin Costner did to the movie. My mum is convinced that he spent hours watching the movie over and over to get the part just right, and I’d be inclined to agree. Whenever he spoke he sounded exactly like Costner.

The chemistry between the two lead characters sizzled, and I quickly found myself rooting for the unlikely couple, despite Rachel’s diva-esque attitude and Frank’s guarded emotions. One of my favourite scenes was where Frank took Rachel on a date to a karaoke bar and she persuaded him to get up and sing. He couldn’t, of course, and just sort of spoke the words to ‘I Will Always Love You’ while Rachel laughed and begged him to stop. It had the whole audience chuckling in their seats, and I think it was at this point I realised just how brilliant the show actually was.

Just like in the film, Rachel’s stalker appears sporadically throughout the show but actually says very little. Words are most definitely not needed for this character, which was brilliantly portrayed by Phil Atkinson. His body language and stage presence were enough to make the audience fear his next move and feel genuine concern for Rachel and her family. His singing cameo during the finale is also a great touch. He got one of the biggest cheers of the night from the audience.

At the beginning of the show, the stalker steals one of Rachel’s costumes from her dressing room while she’s performing on stage, which prompted me to ask whether anything like this had ever happened at The Theatre Royal or Royal Concert Hall before. And I’m happy to report that it hasn’t, due to security being exceptionally tight there. Although I never doubted that for a second!

I thought the rest of the casting was brilliant as well, with everyone fitting their roles just perfectly. And the scenery? Well, the scenery was just incredible! Whenever Rachel was supposed to be performing on stage it felt like we were at an actual pop concert and when she was at home it looked like she was in a mansion. The attention to detail was fantastic.

Before I went to see The Bodyguard I assumed that the main Whitney Houston songs from the movie would be in there, along with some songs specifically written for the show. But I was so wrong! The show is chock-full of incredible Whitney classics such as Saving All My Love For You, The Greatest Love Of All, How Will I Know and I Wanna Dance With Somebody.

I also need to mention how much I loved the costumes! Rachel’s show costumes were super sexy, with sequins galore. They were exactly what you’d expect a modern-day superstar to be wearing. And because The Bodyguard has been moved out of the ’90s and into the current day, the rest of the outfits were very on-trend. I was lusting after every pair of shoes/boots Alexandra wore in the show, too. They were all just gorgeous.

I definitely feel that the incredible cast make this show the success it is. They had high energy throughout the whole thing, and it’s obvious how much they enjoy doing what they do. I especially loved Micha Richardson, who played the part of Rachel’s sister, Nicki. She comes across as being very loving and sweet, and you really feel for her when you learn that she was pushed out of the spotlight by Rachel as a teenager. Nicki is the first of the sisters to fall for Frank, and my heart went out to her when she found out he’d slept with her sister.

Micha also has an amazing voice and can seriously hold her own alongside Alexandra. Her character is possibly the most complex one in the production as she struggles with her sister’s success, is envious of the bond between Rachel and her son, Fletcher, and her feelings for Frank cause her to be in a state of turmoil for much of the show. The rollercoaster of emotions is portrayed beautifully by Micha, and when she and Alexandra sang ‘Run To You’ together I’m not ashamed to say it had me (and lots of other people around me) in tears.

I also want to give a special mention to the adorable Noah Burnett, who played the part of Rachel’s son, Fletcher, on the night we saw The Bodyguard. He played the part just perfectly, and I felt he had a genuine connection with both Alexandra and Benoît, making his character super believable. I’ll definitely be remembering his name, as I’m sure he’s a star in the making!

SUMMARY 

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed The Bodyguard. And so did my mum. I was completely gripped from start to finish, and I would most definitely go and see it again if I got the chance. The entire cast is absolutely fantastic, and it was clear from the start that they love being a part of the show.

If there was ever a perfect ending to a musical then this was it – Alexandra Burke absolutely smashing ‘I Will Always Love You’ whilst rising up on an elevated stage to a completely captivated audience. I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house at this point. But within minutes everyone in the auditorium was up on their feet and dancing in the aisles while the cast took their curtain call and launched into an awesome rendition of ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’ – a fitting tribute to Whitney herself.

The Bodyguard is often referred to as a ‘smash-hit musical’ and it’s really not hard to see why. If you want to see some serious talent and watch a familiar storyline play out like its the first time you’ve ever seen it, get yourself tickets booked to your nearest showing as quickly as you can – I promise it will be a night that you’ll never forget!

The show is currently running at the Theatre Royal in Nottingham until Saturday 22nd June 2019, before continuing on its tour around the UK. Tickets for the shows can be booked by clicking here.

Are you a fan of musicals? And have you ever seen The Bodyguard on the stage?
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I was kindly given two tickets to see The Bodyguard in exchange for an honest review