What’s it about?

A reimagining of the six wives of Henry VIII, presenting them as pop stars who, through retelling of their histories, reclaim their narratives from their infamous husband’s shadow.

What did we think?

Live stage recordings can often feel very passive and static but I’m pleased to report that SIX captures the frenetic energy that has made the stage show such a colossal hit worldwide. It uses a lot of cutaway shots to drag your attention to where it needs to be and at one point even employs a really creative technique of shooting from within the crowd at a pivotal scene late in the production. It works incredibly well.

Shot over five nights in 2022 and edited together it’s got such a kinetic presence that fans all over the world will be delighted with the opportunity to bop along with quality renditions of their favourite songs on the big screen. The vocals of Maiya Quansah-Breed (as the often overlooked Catherine Parr) in particular are truly incredible, and almost to the point of almost overshadowing the other Queens. Natalie Paris’ Jane Seymour is also worthy of mention.

Full of the wit, humour and vibrancy that made us fall in love with the production, Six The Musical Live is the rare beast where the cinematic version actually captures the spirit of the stage production.

My daughters and I have seen it live four times including the theatre in West End where this was filmed and I have to say the live West End production last year was quite subdued and a little disappointing. Thankfully this version is anything but.