I Wish My Life Were More Like a Musical – Live at Zédel

Suzie Mathers and Liam Tamne (pictured below) in I Wish My Life Were Like a Musical at Live at Zédel, London

I Wish My Life Were More Like a Musical continues at Live at Zédel, London until 17 April 2018.

Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩

The multi-talented Alexander S Bermange (composer, lyricist, MD, pianist, vocalist, co-arranger) has hit the jackpot with this racy revue about the trials and tribulations of life in showbusiness.

Best known for his comic songs on BBC Radio, Bermange is a clever writer, gently humorous rather than laugh-out-loud, side-splittingly funny, and he takes us through from audition rejection to, hopefully, stardom with all the highs and lows in between.

He knocks for six the idealised public perception of there’s no business like showbusiness, of being chauffeured from front door to stage, being put up in five-star hotels and generally living a life of glitz and glamour.

Bermange sings ‘Stuck in the Ensemble’ himself but for the rest he accompanies his four well-chosen and hugely gifted performers Suzie Mathers, Oliver Savile, Liam Tamne and Diana Vickers to interpret his “sardonic but affectionate” material. Mathers and Tamne, in particular, knock it right out of the park.

Mathers, Glinda in the 10th anniversary cast of Wicked, has an incredibly powerful voice and a radiant smile which she uses to great effect in ‘The Diva’s in the House’ and ‘I Love to Sing’ while all-action Tamne – Raoul in Phantom and Enjolras in Les Mis are among his West End credits – has a fine sense of humour (and a superb falsetto!).

‘Only Then Can I Truly Perform’, detailing all the primping and pyrotechnics he has to put himself through before he can face the audience, gives full rein to this very personable performer’s sense of fun.

Mathers and Savile touch on the dangers of the job in ‘When a Fan Loves a Woman’ when the artist gets stalked. ‘Standing By’, about always being the cover and never getting star billing, gives Tamne another chance to shine and ‘Magic’s Making Me’ is a cracking number for the whole company.

Direction is in the hands of Paul Foster whose A Little Night Music at the Watermill was one of my highlights of 2017. So no wonder this show snaps, crackles and pops from the get-go, making full use of the Crazy Coqs space right from the dynamic start.

From ‘The Opening Number’, made up of short musical quotations of well-known opening numbers, to ‘You Can’t End a Show Without An Encore’ finale, this is 18 witty ditties skilfully delivered and 80 minutes very pleasantly spent. Recommended.

Jeremy Chapman