The Wedding Singer - Palace Theatre - 24/02/08 by Kashif Naveed

They say nothing succeeds like success and if it’s been successful the chances are that it will continue to be successful. That in a nutshell is what faced me as The Wedding Singer – The Musical made its UK premiere in good ol’ Manchester.

Many of you will no doubt recall that the Wedding Singer was actually a successful Hollywood movie starring the delectable Drew Barrymore and resident goofball (resident being of all goofball comedies for the past ten years) Adam Sandler, which charted a lovely romantic story set in the nostalgia fest that was the 1980s. Such a winning formula was seized upon by Matthew Sklar, Chad Beguelin and Tim Herlihy who turned it into a musical.

It largely follows the same plot as the film version with a few minor amendments here or there, but given that Herlihy had written the original screenplay then he probably had the right to change it if he so wishes. The musical also proved to be a runaway success, garnering a hatful of Tony nominations but failing to pick up a single gong on the night.

Yet, somehow despite such expectation that had greeted the beginning of the evening’s entertainment it ended somewhat disappointingly. Not to say it was poor. Far from it, it had the makings of a fine musical, one which will probably do well when it begins its run in the West End. Nonetheless, for this would-be fan it lacked a little sparkle.

So where to begin? Firstly, I have to say that I was more than a little disappointed that the nostalgic trip to the 1980s did not extend to the music as all the musical numbers were originals (although it includes the two memorable tracks from the motion picture: Somebody Kill Me and Grow Old With You). No Van Halen, Culture Club or the Buggles to be warbled or any other snippets from the soundtrack, which had also proved to be successful.

Whilst this is entirely my fault and that if you concentrated hard enough you could pick out the styles of 80s music genre that the numbers were based upon, I do have to say that I did not think - as musicals go - that the all the numbers stood the test of time, well the duration of the play at least. That was not the only thing to leave me irksome. The little changes orchestrated by Chad Beguelin and Tim Herlihy took away some charm of the film version. For example, the song Somebody Kill Me showcases a lovely comedic moment between Sandler and Barrymore, whereas in the stage version the character of Robbie gets to play it in his bedroom to his other band members.

Okay, I admit it I am quibbling over mere details, but those details are what made the original so popular to begin with. Furthermore, whilst I had quibbles what I cannot deny is what a fantastically orchestrated show it really was. The choreography and direction by Karen Bruce was particularly outstanding, whilst Set and Costume designer, Isla Shaw, also deserves a mention, even managing to get a Flock of Seagull haircut into the show. The plaudits do not end there, with Nick Hayes playing George criminally stealing every scene that he was involved in.

Despite such ravings from my good self, it’s Achilles Heel lies in its two stars, who play the leading characters of Robbie Hart and Julia Sullivan and have to live up to the spectre of Barrymore and Sandler.

Those stars in question are Jonathan Wilkes and Natalie Casey, almost household names. Their performance sometimes lacked the necessary charm and charisma that is oft required for such romantic roles. Wilkes often appeared to be more a poor man’s Shane Ritchie than the bona fide article. A karaoke styled performance with a smattering of some American accent that you could not quite put your finger on. Casey meanwhile had her moments of conveying the more raw aspects to her character, but too often she slipped back into the Casey we all know and love - that being the brash northerner from Hollyoaks and Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps)

And therein lies the problem at the heart of the Wedding Singer. For despite it lovely romantic plot and sometime singalong numbers the leading duo’s lack of spark failed to ignite with the audience or the show.