Review of Six at Glasgow's Theatre Royal

ALL RISE for the Queens, who brought an ecstatic Glasgow audience to its feet on Tuesday night.

Bow to the Queens, stars of Six - the real sister act and a musical like no other - which raised the roof at the Theatre Royal (even the cast looked momentarily overwhelmed by the audience’s response).

Cheer on the Queens, the six wives of Henry VIII, who finally get to tell their stories after centuries of misinformation and misogyny.

And weep for the Queens – because let’s face it, this is a heartbreaking tale of lost identities, lost loves and – there is no delicate way of putting it -  lost heads. Tudor womanhood? Wouldn’t recommend, as Catherine Parr neatly sums up in the second act.

Born from an Edinburgh Fringe student production and transformed into a global success story, Six puts Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anna of Cleeves, Katherine Howard and Catherine Parr centre stage as they vie to be lead singer in a pop band.

Whoever has the most tragic tale wins, but as each tells her story, it becomes less about competing with each other and more about supporting each other. Creators Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss describe it as “fun, silly, comic and powerful”, which just about covers it – it’s also very engaging and moving and clever, distilling just enough of the history to make you feel like you are learning something without it being dull.

What a cast, too, on this tour - Glasgow’s own Leesa Tulley got an especially warm welcome from her home crowd, as a cheeky Glaswegian Anne Boleyn - but to a woman, they are immense, effortlessly delivering pin-sharp harmonies, power ballads and joyful pop anthems aplenty.

Chloe Hart expertly channels Beyonce as a sassy, bold Catherine of Aragon; Casey Al-Shaqsy has an Adele vibe as sweet Jane Seymour, “the only one he truly loved”; Jessica Niles is rocking a Rhianna ‘queenspiration’, as Anna of Cleeves; Alana Robinson could give Emeli Sande a run for her money, as the survivor, Catherine Parr; and Jaina Brock-Patel, with arguably the most difficult song because it turns from sexy and light to troubling and dark very quickly, is a Britney Spears-inspired Katherine Howard, the second of Henry’s wives to be beheaded.

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It's a simple set, with an outstanding live band on stage, and the costumes are breathtaking (think Ariana Grande let loose in a Tudor version of the Great British Sewing Bee haberdashery).

Six is sharp and sweet, doesn’t take itself too seriously, and a little bit sad too – how much, honestly, has changed for women in 500 years?

All hail the Queens, bringing women's stories out of the shadows and into the spotlight in style.

Six is at the Theatre Royal until Sunday (June 19) and back again from August 29 to September 3 in 2023.