Review: Mary Poppins

By Yvette HuddlestonMaking its only Yorkshire stop on a UK tour, this splendid production of Mary Poppins flew in to the Alhambra last week '“ and it is a real treat.
By The Newsroom
Published 8th Nov 2016, 09:53 BST
Updated 16th Nov 2016, 17:02 BST

As a big fan of the 1964 Disney film – which I have watched many times both as a child and a parent – I have to admit to being a little apprehensive about seeing the stage production.

How would it compare? I needn’t have worried – this is its own thing entirely and Zizi Strallen as Mary and Matt Lee as her partner-in-mischief cheeky chappie chimney sweep Bert stamp their own mark on the roles made famous by Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke. In fact, their performances are pretty much practically perfect in every way.

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The magnificent Sherman Brothers songs – Feed the Birds, Jolly Holiday, A Spoonful of Sugar, Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, Let’s Go Fly a Kite et al – are all delivered in style and there a few new ones (by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe) which blend in seamlessly.

The choreography is slick and energetic and the visual effects are really quite breathtaking. A truly magical experience for the whole family.

Bradford Alhambra. To December 10.

Related topics:YorkshireDisney