Review: Gypsy - Sound Ideas (10.09.2025)

Review by April Nash

I was delighted when I was asked to review Sound Ideas Theatre Company’s production of Gypsy at the Norwich Playhouse, having already eagerly purchased a ticket for the Saturday show, I was so excited to see its opening night.

I’ll get the show description out of the way first.

Gypsy (the Musical Fable) is based on the memoirs of burlesque star Gypsy Rose Lee. It tells the story of Louise (played by Nina Taylor), her mother, Rose (Holly Graham), and the struggle of their family's musical act across America during the dying days of vaudeville.

With a score by Jule Styne and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, it does a really interesting job of being a “traditional sounding musical” but with complex characters and a more interesting plot structure than you would expect from a piece of its time. Like shows of its time, however, there are three full overtures throughout the show with an 18-piece orchestra - led by Acer Smith - something that felt like a real treat, especially as they were in full view on the stage.

The stage was used to its fullest, with just the odd bit of furniture here and there to depict new locations and with an impressive revolve in the centre. In my opinion, it did not get used enough, although there were some excellent moments where it allowed us to view a scene from a different perspective, so I understand the ambition.

Now I’ve done that bit, I’d like to just wax lyrical about the show now please and thank you.

I’m probably going to run out of adjectives for how impressive I thought the whole thing was. It was slick and professional, with many, many stylish costume and wig changes happening at lightning speed (and that’s not even mentioning the striptease bit!). The burlesque costumes were a personal favourite, with Anna Goode, Hannah Valentine, and Rebecca Wells in the hilarious number “You’ve Gotta Have a Gimmick.” They may have only been in the show for this short section, but their over-the-top characters and performances brought the house down.

Another brilliant character was Rose’s other daughter, Dainty June, played marvellously by Emily Sidnell, who not only could do the old-fashioned, over-the-top, vaudeville performing to perfection (from having to be in a repetitive, childish, and tired act), but was also able to show her acting and singing chops in the legitimate duet “Get Married Today” with Taylor. Their voices blended beautifully together as they imagined a life where they would not have to be under the thumb of their pushy mother anymore.

Act one focuses on the early days of vaudeville with the talented younger actors playing Baby June (Esmeralda Hart) and Baby Louise (Imogen Howard), holding the stage with a presence far beyond their years. After a great sequence (I won’t spoil it), the performers grow up, and we are introduced to the new supporting “boys” (Aiden Pulford, Chris Davidson, Eddie Bayes, and Alex Green). Green, who plays Tulsa, gets a wonderful number, “All I Need Is the Girl,” which is really reminiscent of a Fred Astaire movie. His singing, dancing, and charming acting all felt effortless, making it a real joy to watch. Multiple other feature roles by the supporting cast (Zac Sowter, Leo Oakley, and Jasmine Harvey) were well distributed and well acted, and made the showbiz and theatre world feel more lived in.

The glue of the show however is the trio of Rose, Louise, and their love interest/agent Herbie (Joseph Betts). Paired with Graham, Betts was the perfect foil; likeable, decent, and ever-supportive (to the detriment of his own health at times). Their chemistry was perfect, and “Wherever We Go” was a great number - the genuine joy and laughter carrying into the audience was infectious.

Nina Taylor as Louise was wonderful, flexing her acting skills as a girl who grows into a young woman finding her own voice (and penchant for stripping) after very much living her entire life to support those around her. Taylor's vocals were sensational, and during her burlesque montage she did a brilliant job of showing Louise’s growth as a performer through each strip tease - it was all so glamorous and great fun, even if the sound levels at points meant we could not hear all the dialogue against the band.

One of my favourite things about this musical is that it’s about complicated characters, difficult relationships, and ambition at any cost.

Rose is the original “stage mother” with a strong, single-mindedness to see her girls to stardom at the cost of everything else. Holly Graham started the show with the charm and charisma of a woman who genuinely wants to see her daughters (well, June at least) succeed in show business. This charm develops against the decline of the vaudeville circuit - with a nuance I was blown away by - as the more the show went on, the more trauma that occurred, the more obsession and determination we saw from Rose to make at least one of her daughters “a star.”

The growth of this performance all culminated in the number “Rose’s Turn.” Graham playing out all of Rose’s fear, jealousy, and longing was a masterclass in acting and not holding back. Oh, and did I mention she did all this whilst singing? It was just amazing. The standing ovation at the end of the show when she walked on really says more than anything I could write about how good her performance was.

The whole show was brilliantly cast, sung, and acted - and I haven’t even mentioned the cow, choreography and the excellent female ensemble! Bravo to Dan Smith, Martin Smith and Acer Smith (plus the wider team) for creating such a smashing piece of theatre.

I’ll let you know now that the show is a long one, so you really get your money’s worth. Make sure you get a ticket to this incredible example of what can be achieved in community theatre, because it’s unbelievable (in the best way!). I’ll see you there again on Saturday!

Gypsy continues at Norwich Playhouse until 14 September.