Rock of Ages continues at His Majesty’s Theatre, Aberdeen until 2 February 2019 and on tour.
Star rating: three stars ★ ★ ★ ✩ ✩
Fans of rock-opera unfettered by notions of either plot development or political
correctness will be delighted with this cheesy as hell piece of rock‘n’roll
debauchery. Landing like aliens upon the Aberdeen stage, the cheap gags spew forth
amongst a feelgood pseudo-rebellious and occasionally offensive script.
A duo of Cleese-like goose-stepping Germans vie with a bevy of gyrating strippers
for supremacy as a thinly spread plot tells of unrequited love and vaunted
ambition. Brassy, glitzy, brash and raunchy, the show makes a mockery of correctness.
Women exist in a bubble of Ann Summers lingerie while the guys generally get to
leer and swill beer.
Thankfully, the musical score makes up for the disappointing dialogue and from the opening call “Are you ready to rock?” to the closing anthem Don’t Stop Believin’, at least the music makes sense. And that probably is the saving grace of Rock of Ages. That is unless you are a fan of smashed guitars – of which there are none.
A Hollywood city mayor clamps down on sex, drugs and rock‘n’roll. A Sunset Strip bar is scheduled for closure, there are various scantily clad folk on stage and eventually the Bourbon Room is spared demolition for reasons which escape sensibility.
Meanwhile, Andrew Carthy’s Franz (‘I’m not gay I’m German’) opens up a sweetie shop in far-off Deutschland and Sherrie fornicates with Stacee in the men’s loo. Club owner Dennis (Kevin Kennedy) discovers that he has been dead these past three years and there is something to do with having sex with a baby llama.
Rock of Ages is of course a celebration of adolescent fantasy. Sweetheart Regina convinces Franz to follow his heart. Sherrie (Jodie Steele) punches washed-out rock-star Stacee Jaxx (Kevin Clifton) in the Venus Club. Regina (Rhiannon Chesterman) decides on self-immolation then has a change of heart but then follows through accidentally and, well, the plot barely thickens.
Number-wise, and there are around 23 of them, the show shows more promise. A band on stage pounds out the favourites and, if you are a fan of Strictly then go see Kevin Clifton as Stacee Jaxx. He won’t disappoint.
From ‘Cum on Feel the Noize’ to ‘Any Way You Want It’ the musical
numbers power on atop the smutty script. Resplendently, ‘Here I Go Again’, ‘Every
Rose Has Its Thorn’, ‘The Final Countdown’ and ‘Sister Christian’ feature
alongside that classic Bon Jovi ‘Wanted Dead or Alive’. Oddly, the show’s Def
Leppard Rock of Ages title track remains largely absent.
This is a rip-roaringly good night of entertainment music-wise. The backing plot
however celebrates that slightly sleazy him and hers old-fashioned school of innuendo.
Indeed, this is an odd production, although in all fairness, it probably does
not take itself too seriously. But in the big scheme, the musical score and the
splendid choreography (Nick Winston, who also directs) are certainly worthy of attention.
Duncan Harley
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