JADAR

★★★★☆

Pretty Woman is a thrilling spectacle of lavish costumes, catchy songs and great comedy moments as the cast unveil a funky 80s twist on the tale of “Cinder-f*ckin’-rella”, as Kit so elegantly put it.

Based on the 1990 Disney rom-com of the same name, Pretty Woman follows the plucky prostitute Vivian Ward (Paige Fenlon, covering Elly Jay, who in turn is covering Amber Davies whilst she competes on Dancing on Ice) as she rolls into Hollywood Boulevard, hoping to scrounge enough money for her rent with Kit de Luca (Natalie Paris).

After a starry-eyed, American Dream-fuelled number to ‘Welcome [us] to Hollywood’, a set of vivid neon lights, juxtaposing the dingy back alleys and competitive nature of the prostitution ring there.

Unlike the tourists, Vivian hopes to be ‘Anywhere but here’, establishing that she doesn’t fit in here, but rather vaguely skirting around the character’s actual motivations. This is also reprised later in the first act to highlight how Vivian also feels isolated in this world of rich people after her encounter with the judgy store clerks that refuse her service. 

A chance encounter leads her to ruthless businessman Edward Lewis (Oliver Savile), originally played by Richard Gere somewhat more contemptibly in the movie iteration.

After striking a $3000 deal, Vivian agrees to spend time with Edward, who slowly melts his cold façade when he realises how warm and hilariously blunt Vivian can be – realising there’s ‘Something About Her’. While this song was a cheerful glimpse into the inner emotions of Edward as he gazes admiringly at Vivian playing with strawberries at her TV “picnic”, it possibly introduces the softer side to Edward a little too soon, meaning the supposedly nuanced transformation from jerk to Prince Charming is undercut as we hear his puppy-eyed inner-monologues and immediately start to like him.

While he admittedly uses her at his upper-class functions and treats her as a way for him to focus on business, a trophy or ‘arm-candy’ to distract other guests, his mistreatment of her is far less antagonistic than I had remembered in the movie, which is both good (as it makes her eventual trust in him seem far less naïve) and bad as it also slights the supposedly harsher elements of his character as mentioned previously. 

While there’s some real stand-out songs, music for a rom-com is always going to be a little cheesy, and ‘Luckiest Girl in The World’ does feel a little oversimplified for Vivian, who would be excited but realistically apprehensive in the situation, especially as she hadn’t seen more of the high-life than his hotel room at this point.

‘I Can’t go back’ also feels a little vague. While its understandable that she can’t move back to her life on the streets, her actual desires and “regrets” are still rather unclear at this point, and the song, while empowering, feels like it starts too uplifting for a song about self-discovery. However, it does build phenomenally and really showcases the sheer vocal capabilities of Paige Fenlon. 

Despite this, Bryan Adams’ influence in these songs are super clear and boost the 80s vibe. For instance, the guitar riffs of songs like ‘Rodeo Drive’ sung by the ABSOLUTE powerhouse Natalie Paris (Kit), along with an ensemble luxuriously dressed in the highest of fashion (at least for the era). 

Following the store incident, my favourite segment of the show was the spicy and dramatic ballroom song, ‘A Night Like Tonight’. Between showing Vivian a genuinely heartwarming gentility and respect that she had clearly never experienced before, Mr. Thompson (Ore Oduba), the hotel manager, also demonstrates how to dance for Edward’s evening event.

Until now, I haven’t had chance to mention the absolute star of the show… Giulio, the bell-boy, played by Noah Harrison, whose hilarious antics were the highlights of Pretty Woman’s comedic aspects.

Whether it be the shy and overdramatic looks he gives Vivian as he realises that she’s a prostitute, grooming and dusting the furniture with her platinum blonde wig, or ballroom dancing with the elite hotel manager, an outrageously coincidental ode to Oduba’s time on Strictly Come Dancing!

Additionally, Oduba’s character perfectly matched this eccentricism, performing as the ‘happy man’, manager, shop owner, and outstandingly as the goofy opera conductor as he suddenly appears above the orchestra pit, frantically waving his arms around while the stunning voice of Lila Falce-Bass soared the stage. 

My favourite love song of the show was ‘Freedom’, which I felt should have been Edward’s first song, and the revelation of his change in heart following his dance with Vivian. With that classic Bryan Adams guitar and piano riff, the emotive yet powerful vocals of Savile, and a real sense of building his character into a better man narratively.

This is also proven when he neglects work the next day to ensure Vivian has a nice experience shopping in town, as she fears being rejected and outcasted by another store. His assurances that ‘You’re Beautiful’ are simply charming as he rekindles Vivian’s self-confidence and uses the perks of being rich to have others at the shop affirm this, before her “Big! Huge!” return the shop that originally shunned her.

While it is again pretty cheesy, it certainly fits for the rom-com theme, and the layering and harmonies are gorgeously melodic and uplifting, albeit with a rather abrupt and cheery ending to the first act.

After teasing the audience with the guitar riff of Roy Orbison’s ‘Pretty Woman’, and a fourth-wall break to promise the audience it will play but “later!!!”, a big ensemble song introduces us to the high-life where Edward accidentally outs Vivian’s secret to Stuckey (Ben Darcy) leading to a sleezy and uncomfortable discussion that breaks Vivian’s heart, leading into the next song.

‘This is my life’ stood out as the most authentic song for Vivian, as she expresses her frustrations with men like Stuckey judging her and defining “a woman’s worth”. It also establishes the moments that led her to prostitution, adding that extra bit of depth and emotion to her character development.

A slightly jarring transition later since the audience is now heavily focused on Vivian at this point, and we’re back on the Boulevard focusing on Kit trying to discover her dream, which is to become a cop. ‘Never Give Up on a Dream’ is a fun little number about dreaming and finding your motivations but it does feel a little clunkily placed in this segment of the show.

We then return to the lovers with another unapologetically Bryan Adams song, ‘You and I’ (which I loved as an 80s rock fan), ending with a rather saucy moment between the two.

Despite this, the show’s conclusion draws near and thus comes the inevitable moment of Edward’s ignorance, not realising she wants love and offering her a house and money instead, with ‘Long Way Home’ beautifully echoing their desire for love and belonging. 

In an important moment for Vivian, she denies his offer, still dreaming of a Prince Charming riding a white horse to save her… which he does! After saving a business from going under, he rides his white horse (gyrates on a park bench with the image of one at least!) and climbs her tower (the infamous ladder scene) before reuniting with her as the two reconcile. 

Then comes the song the whole audience were waiting for… ‘Pretty Woman’, joined with applause, dancing and standing ovations as the cast took their final bows. 

While the show has some flaws in terms of its adaptation of certain characteristics from the movie to musical, its upbeat tone, soulful singers, resplendent regalia, cracking comedy routines, and emotionally empowering story of self-worth and love, makes it an undeniable success (as long as you don’t mind the slightly rose-tinted view of the world).

Pretty Woman runs at Palace Theatre Manchester until March 16 and tours the UK until September 28.

Photo: Marc Brenner