Review

BORD GAIS ENERGY THEATRE

alexandra

God bless musicals like The Bodyguard. Based on the 1992 cinematic weep-fest with Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston, 'The Bodyguard Gets Groovy' (our new name for this fascinating beast of a show) is one of, if not the funniest song-and-dance set-ups we've ever witnessed.

We've got slow-motion action sequences and fire. We've got crass innuendos and lots of bad acting. We've got a laughable bogeyman who buries his head in a dress as the leading starlet gets emotional.

And, we've got a former secret- service agent who should never have been put on the payroll. Think about it: Frank was hired to protect Rachel Marron (the biggest star on the planet) from her stalker, and what does he do? He takes her on a date. Now, I'm no fancy protector chap with a gun and badge, but I'm pretty sure that's bold boy behaviour right there.

Alexandra Burke (an X Factor champ) gives us Karaoke Whitney; decent voice and all, but she seems a lot more comfortable pretending that this is one of her own gigs and not a big-budget ensemble piece. As for Stuart Reid (Frank), well, methinks he's wandered on to the wrong set.

Marron's 10-year-old kid, Fletcher, would have made for a more convincing superman babysitter. Frank also sings that Dolly Parton tune. The Frank/Rachel chemistry is non-existent.

Tone-wise, 'The Bodyguard Musical Soap Opera' (another potential title) is all over the shop; hilarious and cringey in all the wrong places, awkward and mortifying in all the right ones. Great tunes, ropey execution. The board game-like set is outstanding (for all the wrong reasons). The big-screen love montage is extraordinary (for all the wrong reasons).

As a parody of the modern musical searching for inspiration on the wrong shelf in the video shop, it is truly exceptional. But, you know, we think the creative team was going for sincere (God bless them, too). So bad, it's actually sort of amazing...

Running until August 1 HHIII