We all love a bit of Dolly, right? But you’d be forgiven for thinking that there couldn’t be a new iteration of a Dolly Parton musical, right? Wrong.
Here You Come Again is a brand new musical treading the boards at Curve, Leicester until Saturday, before heading on a national tour that will, ultimately, see it hit London’s West End. And, like Dolly, it’s an absolute belter stuffed full of Dolly’s biggest hits. We said hits. ;-P
Created originally in the USA, but given some Northern charm and homespun comedy by none other than Coronation Street’s Jonathan Harvey, Here You Come Again transports you back to the heady days of lockdown. Remember the happy birthday song, the clap for the NHS and even the stockpiling of loo rolls? It’s all in there thanks to Harvey’s hand.
From the get-go, Stephen Webb as Kevin has you eating from his palm. With a natural charisma that can’t be learned, you are drawn into his pandemic world – in this case, the attic of his parents’ house where he is bubbling after a breakup with the love of his life. And he turns to Dolly, his childhood icon and poster girl.
As he begins to mentally unravel, Dolly – in a flash of light and burst of glitter – steps out of his poster and into his life with sage advice and a song or two. And what songs they are! Here You Come Again, naturally, features alongside Jolene, Love is like a butterfly, Islands in the stream and I will always love you, but there are plenty of lesser known bangers in there, too that fit perfectly with the storyline.
Tricia Paoluccio, as the iconic big D herself, was made for this role. Literally. Tricia was part of the writing team behind the show itself, alongside her husband Bruce Vilanch and Gabriel Barre. A lifetime in the making, her performance the benchmark of all future Dolly impersonations as she breathes life into the character – even when, from time to time, they break the script and end up howling with laughter. The audience lap it up. She’s Dolly, afterall and everyone loves Dolly.
Tricia says; “Playing Dolly is an honour and I know it will be the highlight of my acting career.”
Proffering words of wisdom, both narrative and musical, Dolly helps Kevin understand that there is life after love, and he is worth more. And we, as the audience, feel this too. We are Kevin. Or know a Kevin.
Tricia adds; “My hope is that people will leave feeling hopeful and inspired. I hope they will laugh (we did) and cry (that too) and that the show will bring a lot of joy (100% did).”
An instant classic, Here You Come Again is playing at Curve until Saturday, and we say Go, Go, Go. This is the best piece of musical theatre we’ve seen since Hairspray. DD-lightful.
Here you come again will be at Theatre Royal, Nottingham, 9-13 July and The Alexandra, Birmingham 10-14 September. Find out more and book tickets at https://hereyoucomeagain.co.uk/#tour
