Sunderland Empire – 15th January 2025
Invited| Review by Stephen Stokoe
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is a musical very dear to my heart and I was delighted to visit the Sunderland Empire to see it as my first review of 2025. The venue was absolutely buzzing with excitement as the show cloth flew out and the orchestra struck up the opening strains of this iconic musical.
I am sure I don’t need to tell you about the story but just in case it tells the early biblical story of Joseph, the favourite son of Jacob, who is forcibly extracted from his family and ends up as a confidant and number two to the lofty Pharaoh Rameses II of Egypt through his uncanny ability to accurately interpret dreams.
The story is being recounted by a teacher who acts as the narrator (Christina Bianco) and works tirelessly throughout the performance taking on the roles of Joseph’s dad and Potiphar’s wife as the story unfolds. Bianco’s performance is remarkable in many respects but not least for her outstanding vocals and sparkling interactions with the main protagonists of the story, Her obvious affection for the children at the start warms the audience before the story begins in earnest.
As a prologue to the action we are introduced to the title character, Joseph (Adam Filipe) with Any Dream Will Do. Filipe lives and breathes the role as his impressive physique and vocals ring round the theatre. He lights up the stage whenever he appears. For me, the character of Joseph is somewhat objectionably arrogant and dislikeable but Filipe successfully negotiates this with a twinkle in the eye and I cannot praise him enough. I have seen many Josephs over the years both in amateur and professional theatre and Filipe is without doubt my absolute favourite. His rendition of ‘Close Ev’ry Door’ had the audience on the edge of their seats and you could have heard a pin drop before the final note. Standing ovations are rare during a performance but Filipe very nearly got one this evening and rightly so.
Local lad Michael Harrison’s upward trajectory into the world of musical theatre and pantomime productions shows no sign of abating and with his technical team including lighting wizard Ben Cracknell and sound technician Gareth Owen at his side, this production is visually and audibly very impressive indeed. The lighting is by no means subtle at various points during the show but Cracknell’s ability to be garish without being intrusive is immaculate as always. The sound from Owen was as crisp as a bell and the set by Morgan Large was very affective although I am reliably informed that is was quite something to load in so much praise must go to the backstage team at Sunderland Empire too.
Headlining the show this evening was another local lad, Joe McElderry who many will have seen in pantomime recently at the Theatre Royal. McElderry lived and breathed his role as the Pharoah this evening. He lapped up the adulation of the crowd and his vocals were very impressive as you would expect from this very talented performer.
Behind every great musical there needs to be a superb orchestra. Helmed by John Rigby as musical director, the orchestra were superb. I was particularly impressed with the sound from the French horn played by Jez Ainsworth Moores which rang out delightfully during the performance and as such gets my star of the show this evening.
Everything about this production screams out ‘no expense spared’ and it shows from the slick direction (Laurence Connor) the exquisite choreography (Joann M, Hunter) through to the extraordinarily effective and reworked “megamix” (David Andrew Wilson and John Cameron) which formed the finale.
If you want to introduce your kids to the magical world of musical theatre then this production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is the best way. From its humble beginnings as a 45 minute cantata written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Sunderland supporter Tim Rice when they were both in education, it has transformed into a much loved and visually spectacular event for the whole family.
Michael Harrison as set a very high bar for theatre for 2025 and it is going to take something impressive to maintain it. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat plays at Sunderland Empire until Sunday 19th January.