Review – Cilla and the Shades of the 60’s – Eastbourne

There is no shortage of tribute acts on the cabaret circuit right now, with many versions of some acts like Take That, Adele, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones out there – but one name that you wouldn’t immediately pick on to create a tribute to is Liverpool’s very own, Cilla Black.

Having said that, Cilla and the Shades of the 60s is essentially just that. Victoria Jones walks, talks, looks and sounds just like “Our Cilla” and holds together this two hour musical, based on Cilla’s life but also featuring a huge selection of songs from many other famous artists of that time.

The costume changes during the show are covered with video clips, voiced by the likes of Ken Dodd, Jimmy Tarbuck and even Cilla herself, which show how she came from a working class background in Scotland Street, Liverpool but went on to become a huge singing star, before changing direction and carving out a television career that lasted until her sudden and untimely death in 2015.

The Shades of the 60s are a trio of women, Anna, Emily and Nicola, who open the show with various 60’s “girl group” hits and return throughout the show to deliver million selling hits like Help!, You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling, Crazy, Respect, The Shoop Shoop Song, These Boots Are Made For Walking and River Deep Mountain High. They work very hard all the way through to get the audience singing and clapping along and, with engaging personalities, crystal clear voices and enthusiasm for the job that they are doing, find that the audience warms to them very quickly.

Victoria Jones is every inch a match for the young Cilla. Whether she is blasting out Heart and Soul or Step Inside Love, soulfully singing Alfie or bringing the audience to tears with You’re My World and Anyone Who Had a Heart, she gives her all and gets huge applause, and a well deserved standing ovation at the end of the show, in return.

A nod is also given to Cilla’s TV highlights with a carefully staged “episode” of Blind Date (using an audience member as the guy who has to pick one of the “Shades” girls to be his “date”) and a lovely rendition of the theme tune to Surprise, Surprise – reminding many in the Royal Hippodrome Theatre audience of tear-soaked Saturday nights spent watching the box!

Cilla and the Shades of the 60’s is so much more than just your run-of-the-mill tribute act. It is a musical that is honest, and genuine, and loaded with heart and soul – just like Cilla herself.

****                         Four Stars

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