Pop Off, Michelangelo! ★★★★

Imagining their childhoods – had they been brought up together – Pop Off, Michelangelo thrusts Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci together as besties, brothers by other mothers and very nearly, lovers. All goes well in their innocent relationship until they realise that their mutual crush on a local barber has serious implications. Quite specifically, a one-way ticket to hell. So, their only chance of redemption is to win over the approval of the Pope by becoming the world’s greatest creators of religious art and thereby gain entry to the celestial palace.

Six slick actors multi-roling as the artists, their friends and parents, the Medicis, the Pope and judges fill the small stage and their voices swell in the auditorium with a gloriously camp and catchy pop score. With nods to an array of iconic modern characters – RuPaul and Beyoncé – as well as musical references to other shows – a nod to the courtroom scene in Parade was detected – there are moments which elicit great whoops and cheers from the rapt audience, (even if everyone didn’t get everything) and propels the show along at much more than a mince!

With a book this rich in content though, diction is key and some of it is lost. But there are great voices, very funny and even touching moments in the almost true story of the world’s most celebrated artists. Joe McNeice has directed an excellent hour of entertainment.