Review - Avenue Q

Monday night - Sunderland Empire

At the Theatre

I think one of the best things about living in the North East is that despite being far from the capital of musicals in England (i.e. London), there are still opportunities to watch top-class performances in one of the local theatres. On this occasion (Monday 14^th July at 7:30pm to be more precise), we (i.e. myself and my significant other) decided to go for the comedy/ musical, Avenue Q, at majestic and extravagant, Sunderland Empire Theatre.

Normally, I opt for shows that are more, shall we say, glitzy and more dazzling in terms of special effects. I also wasn’t sure if I was super keen on the puppet and human mix that made up that characters of the show. Plus I have a thing for songs that evoke Disney and other musical numbers that are slightly more geared for a younger audience. So in truth, I was a bit sceptical about the play at first.

What can I say? I’m still (and ALWAYS will be) a child at heart.

Despite my scepticism, I decided to give the show a go because I hadn’t seen it before (plus my significant other said he’d drive me home and buy me dinner << now who can resist that?).

And honestly, I couldn’t have made a better decision.

I don’t think there was a single moment during the performance that I wasn’t blown away by some aspect of it. I know that most theatre reviews commonly start with summarizing the main plot of the play. But I for one would like to begin by giving praise to the actors themselves. There weren’t many of them, so I thought that their ability to portray so many different characters, both human and puppet, and in so many different voices was truly incredible. The story itself was also admirable – with the theme of adulthood thoroughly reiterated throughout the play, Avenue Q provided the audience with a performance that addressed the many issues and troubles faced by individuals entering this period. A highly realistic show, it was simultaneously tied together by a stream of jokes and sarcasm, overall indicating that despite the hardship, there’s still hope and time for laughter at any stage in life.

Oh and did I mention that we got upgraded to better seats? Totally worth it.

Sensational and memorable – if Avenue Q is ever on tour in your town, be sure to watch it.