The Sister Act musical is based on the massive hit 1992 film of the same name which starred Whoopi Goldberg, and is such a well-known movie from that iconic 90’s era of great film making that it went on to have an even more successful sequel. If the nineties and subsequent 2.2 decades passed you by somehow and you haven’t seen it because you’ve been wedged real hard under a rock, get up and out to Hammersmith this summer for a belly-laughing, feel-good, disco-style night out, in the hands of a cast which boasts no less than three household names, a Hollywood film star and an additional two West End stars thrown in for good measure.
The story sees Deloris Van Cartier (Beverley Knight MBE), an aspiring singer in Philadelphia, auditioning to perform at her gangster boyfriend’s nightclub and accidentally sees him kill one of his cronies. Deloris goes to the police, who place her in hiding at a convent until the case is brought to trial. At first, this looks like the worst thing in the world for both Deloris and the convent, but after navigating the immovable Reverend Mother (played by none other than the hilarious Jennifer Saunders) she is introduced to the struggling choir at the convent and everything changes. This joyous show is then filled with song after song with music by none other than THE Alan Menken (best known for scoring almost every major Disney movie including Aladdin, The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast to name a few) and lyrics by Glenn Slater (Tangled, Love Never Dies, School of Rock). It combines this the comic and thrilling book by Bill and Cheri Steinkellner with amazing results and easily earns the “Best Night Out” award if you’re looking for an uplifting, side-splitting musical this summer.