Review: Freaky Friday, at HOME, Manchester

The day I saw The Enormous Crocodile was a special one - it was part of a 2 show day, something I don't think I have ever done for my home city, and something I save for London trips instead. 

And after looking around the Christmas markets with my boyfriend, I walked over to HOME in Deansgate for the first time since 2022 when I saw Hedwig & the Angry Inch. It may not be a Christmassy story at all, but it was for a story that brings back the early 200s nostalgia: Freaky Friday. 

Many of us will remember the 2003 version starring Lindsey Lohan and Jaime Lee Curtis, but did you know that there are several adaptations of this story, all by Disney?

Mary Rodger's original novel and the subsequent adaptations all follow the same idea; mother and daughter who don't get along are magically swapped into each other's bodies, and have to figure out a way to swap back. What's strange is that every single adaptation is different, under different circumstances, and the names are different. 

Case in point, the only thing this musical adaptation shares with the 2003 version is the name Freaky Friday. I wanted to call Katherine and Ellie, our protagonists, Tess and Anna instead the whole time I was watching it. 

This musical adaptation debuted in 2016 in Arlington, Virginia, before playing in San Diego, Cleveland, Houston and more. Then, it was turned into a Disney Channel Original Movie (or DCOM) in 2018, with Heidi Blinkenstaff reprising her performance as Katherine from the original stage show. This production at HOME, produced by Paul-Taylor Mills, is the UK premiere of Freaky Friday. 

I'm going to be honest, this one is not going to be easy to write, because Freaky Friday for me, was not the most memorable show I have seen this year

Let's get the elephant in the room out of the way; the material itself. Which is a surprise as the music and lyrics are by Tom Kitt & Brian Yorkey, the same time behind Next To Normal - we know they can write an excellent banger! However, the tunes in Freaky Friday are sadly rather forgettable, I'm in all honesty only remembering one because Elaine Paige played it on her show, and another because of the randomness of the love interest Adam comparing women to sandwiches. 

They are very much as if they were written for the Disney Channel all along, as if that was always going to be the plan. And I don't have an issue with that if it has the charm to back it up, like High School Musical did. Freaky Friday knows it is likely going to be a guilty pleasure, which if that is what you want, that's fine. However it doesn't have the meat in the material to get you hooked and invested in these characters. 

This production was directed by Andy Fickman, who many may know for bringing Heathers to the stage, as well as another 2000s romcom - 13 Going On 30. That show wasn't perfect, but the difference with that however, was that it was clear that the Manchester run for 13 Going On 30 was a world premiere, a trial run. It knows it's not perfect and that work still needs to be done so you're open to forgive it more and be open to its charm. Because Freaky Friday has had multiple productions in the States, and it is not a direct adaptation of a story people already know (I can bet most people will expect a direct adaptation of the 2003 classic), it is harder to be as open about it. 

For example, while we may get on board with mother Katherine's stress in planning her own wedding (oof!) and Ellie's school politics, the scavenger hunt plotline feels very odd, and just a convenient excuse for the other hourglass to be relevant to the story. 

I may seem like I am being harsh with it, so let's get to the good

The best thing about this show for me is the cast, with three people in particular: Rebecca Lock (Here & Now, The Steps Musical), Jena Pandya (Come Fall in Love), and Ghaith Saleh. Despite the script being sub-par, they used what they had and still turned in a fun, and sometimes surprisingly moving performance. 

We, as the theatre community, love it when Lock gets an opportunity to belt in our face. And from the third row especially. Pandya also has a gorgeous voice, set to be one of the big names of tomorrow. 

Their performances both seemed to get better once they had swapped bodies, after a little shaky start from the material they were given. I bet it is a mammoth acting challenge, to have to think about your own character in someone else's body, while you play another. Lock getting to let loose and act like a teenager, and Pandya trying to act polite at a girl who is quite clearly a snobby bully were funny in equal measure. 

I must say that Saleh's performance was perhaps my favourite, and not for the reason you may think. While Fletcher may often be the annoying but cute 10 year old, his ambition is to be the next Jim Henson. And he always has a puppet or two on his hands. What impressed me so much was that he was animating the puppets and giving them a personality. You became invested in what he was doing and how the puppet reacted to what was going on and being said around him, almost as an extension of Fletcher himself. The perfect example of this was the Women and Sandwiches scene between him and Adam. It wasn't completely seamless, but he's a child honing his craft. Who knows whether or not we will see him in a production of Avenue Q in the future. 

The other cast gives it their best, but the material doesn't give them much other than one dimensional tropes, such as they fiancé, the overworked assistant, the best friends, the mean girl, the love interest... you get the picture. 

Freaky Friday knows what it is - a guilty pleasure. And if that's what you fancy, then great. However, I personally think there are better musicals that fit that category

Freaky Friday is a Disney Channel Original Movie come to life, and it knows it. Why they didn't just adapt the 2003 adaptation to the stage and let us watch Take Me Away being guitar-shredded right in front of our eyes, we will never know. But for what it is, it's fine. 

Am I glad I saw it? Yes. However, it doesn't make me want to immediately want to check out the DCOM. Not quite the Christmas treat I was hoping for, but it was better than a bowlful of Brussel Sprouts.