Matilda the Musical

[originally posted on social media in August 2014]

    Matilda was AMAZING!!!! Everyone told me so but I was a little apprehensive as it was my favourite book growing up; but it's awesome! Left with moist eyes and a huge grin, and even after 3.5 hours I'm still on cloud nine.

[May 2020 edit, after watching the show two more times]

    After three viewings, Matilda is quite possibly my favourite musical currently on the West End. It takes some liberties with the story but in ways that bring us closer to the feel of the book, not further away. The music is original and witty, perfectly capturing the different characters; I mean, it's Tim Minchin so I can't say I'm surprised! And the staging is brilliant whilst still fairly simple.

    With three different casts under my belt, I can also safely say that the performance quality is consistent, both in the adults and the children. And it's such a pleasure to listen to professional child performers who are using their voices in a healthy way rather than pushing for volume or a more adult sound! Hooray for sensible music teachers and directors!!

   But it's not just on paper that it works, the sum of its parts adding up to a success. The third time I watched it, I was just as enthralled by the choreography and word-play of School Song, and sobbed just as hard during Quiet. And there it is, why a musical about a pipsqueak starting primary school with magical powers has managed to capture us all: because, just like the book, it speaks to our experience of life - the bullies, the friends, the loneliness, the hope. And how books see us through it all.


Conclusion: Absolutely! [what is this?]


Matilda the Musical has been onstage at the Cambridge Theatre since 2011.

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