Review: A Chorus Line, UK Tour, at the Lowry, Salford

If you were to brainstorm which musicals changed Broadway forever, you would surely have A Chorus Line up there; a real game changer in that it brought dance front and centre. This is not solely due to it being stacked with choreography that became iconic, but A Chorus Line is the story of a Broadway dancer. 

Allow me to explain

A Chorus Line was created by director Michael Bennett, who in the 1970s gathered a group of Broadway chorus line dancers, grabbed a tape recorder and pressed record. Nearly 24 hours of interviews and stories from these dancers. 

These dancers sold their stories for $1 each; after 11 years on Broadway, each dancer received thousands of dollars back in revenue; to be expected when the story you help contribute to becomes one of the most successful pieces of musical theatre of all time. 

A Chorus Line takes place during an audition for the chorus of a new Broadway show 

17 dancers are put through their paces physically and mentally, through gruelling routines and by sharing their stories at the request of the director, Zac (played by Adam Cooper (Singin' in the Rain)). Will they get it? 

A Chorus Line is not a glitzy "putting on a show" show you would perhaps expect it to be. Don't let the finale of One make you think otherwise; A Chorus Line is about people, not glitzy numbers. The centre of the show is each auditionees story they decide to divulge, whether it be school troubles, the unfortunate lack of a singing voice, or not getting jobs despite their talent due to their "looks". Each story is given just the amount of time it needs; some are more intriguing than others. 

And speaking of people, this is such an amazing group of people to tell these stories 

This cast is a team of triple threats that turn A Chorus Line to WOW. Like I said, A Chorus Line is about people. They make Ellen Kane's choreography look easy, sing a storm, and can really pull an emotional punch. For the latter, no-one can do that better than Manuel Pacific as Paul, who has this monologue near the end of the show that leaves you not only transfixed, but also incredibly moved. Jocasta Almgill (RENT) is dynamic as Diana Morales, her take on the emotional What I Did For Love being an emotional highlight. 

But if there is one person's story you get invested in more than anyone else's, it's Cassie's. You get little hints that there's something there, and then it explodes in her number The Music and the Mirror, an explosion of solo choreography. And half of what makes Curves Cassie so endearing and magnetic, is the performance from Carly Mercedes-Dyer (Anything Goes). She is truly phenomenal. 

If you have never seen A Chorus Line before, this tour is the time to go 

Many productions in the past have been tethered to the original in some way: this one does not, with even the iconic choreography getting a fresh take by Ellen Kane: less flashy, a bit more earthy and raw, and fitting with its 70s routes, rather than just the glitz and glamour of Broadway. Like the story, the dancing reflects the truth behind the mask. 

A Chorus Line has just finished its run at the Lowry, but it is continuing on its UK tour, including a season at London's Sadler's Wells.