Reviews

The Rat Pack Vegas Spectacular at The Bristol Hippodrome Saturday 19 July 2014

Posted on: 2014-07-22

James Jnr portrayal of Sammy Davis Jnr stole the show

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As a child I was bought up with the sounds of the Rat Pack so when the Rat Pack Vegas Spectacular came to Bristol I saw it as an ideal chance to reminisce with my father.  We took our seats and as the curtain rose we were transported to the Sands Hotel Las Vegas.

Unfortunately the set was not quite Las Vegas and more Butlins,  during the first half of the show there were feedback issues and at points the band appeared to drown out the vocal performances of the cast. This improved as the show went on,  the second half was much better and although The Showgirls were well presented the lacked choreography and often seemed unsure of the routine, but these were not the reasons for coming to see the show it was all about Dean, Sammy and Frank. 

First up was Wayne Kennedy’s Dean Martin. There was no real resemblance and the voice was ok at best but this was not his biggest issue. He over played the drunk role. Stumbling around the stage with a glazed expression and a glass in his hand, this portrayal was overdone to the point of being cringe worthy.

Next up Roman Marek, now this guy had his character down to a tee and sang the songs with a good strong voice although the gags in between were unnecessary and often too scripted, including local out of context and stereotypical references. In fact most of the act seemed heavily scripted rather than allowing the natural flow of the performers. Both these guys lacked any real charisma, this was a quality on which the original rat pack thrived and it was sadly missing here.

That was until the arrival of James Jnr and his version of Sammy Davis Jnr he was by some way the best of the three in fact his performance was near perfection. He had it all the walk, the voice and the mannerisms were all spot on. Without this guy I think the evening would have been a big disappointment. This was apparent at the end of the show when each member stepped forward to take their applause it was only James who received the wolf whistles and cheers rather than just standard clapping.

All this big hits were there My Way, That’s Amore, The Candy Man most played out in their entirety although the second half began with a medley of hits which seemed hurried and pushed along. The encore was New York New York and the cast at this point got most of the audience up on their feet for a final hurrah which went down quite well. On the whole although parts of the show were a disappointment but James Jnr’s, Sammy Davies Jnr was a truly amazing performance and really did steal the show.

2 out of 5 for The Rat Pack Las Vegas Spectacular. (but a 5 out of 5 for James Jnr's take on Sammy Davis Jnr)

Reviewed be Lee Gitsham for 365Bristol.com

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