The hit 1984 film ‘The Karate Kid’ has marched into the Sheffield Lyceum, now reimagined as an action-packed musical production (from the book written by Robert Mark Kamen and composed by Drew Gasparini). The cast of this musical are ridiculously talented, and it makes for a deeply enjoyable watch.
The show follows teenager Daniel Larusso, who moves to Southern California with his single mother Lucille. He finds himself the target of bullying at the hands of the Cobra Kai dojo, particularly Johnny Lawrence, which only derails after he falls for Ali Mills, Lawrence’s ex-girlfriend. After befriending his local maintenance man Mr. Miyagi, who is secretly a martial arts master, Larusso trains under his new sensei’s watchful eye to fight the Cobra Kai at a karate competition.
Walking into the show I was unsure as to what to expect. The film itself is 20 years older than I am, so I was fearful this production would feel dated. When I took my seat, I noticed the audience was around a 50/50 split of children to adults, so then I was worried it may overuse modern-day memes and references. I am pleased to report that it successfully balances the nostalgia of the original film alongside the brightness needed for a feel-good musical.
The show has been expertly crafted under Amon Miyamoto’s direction and Keone and Marie Madrid’s choreography. Despite some scenes feeling empty due to the smaller ensemble, particularly during the first act, a significant majority of the show was blocked and choreographed fantastically. Action was consistently high-energy, quieter scenes felt solemn, and contemporary movements blended seamlessly with more typical musical-style dance numbers. I felt the final fight during the competition and numbers such as ‘Strike First. Strike Hard. No Mercy.’ were definite standouts.
The show’s lead role was played by understudy Isaac J. Lewis. He was able to reflect the naivety of Larusso’s character, while displaying a desire for more. His chemistry with Adrian Pang (Mr. Miyagi), Abigail Amin (Ali Mills) and Sharon Sexton (Lucille Larusso) felt natural throughout, with somewhat cringeworthy and fast-paced scripting being the reason it could’ve been more believable. Lewis also has a black belt in karate, and it shows, with Larusso’s skill development feeling raw and real. Lewis’ theatrical talent is also highly commendable, his tone was wonderful throughout the show and never wavered.
Adrian Pang as Mr. Miyagi is most certainly a performance to write home about. The fatherly nature he encompasses alongside impressive vocal talent, comedic timing and stage presence makes Pang perfect for the role. The most heart-wrenching scene of the show (by a mile) is when Mr. Miyagi opens up about the passing of his wife and child. Pang was able to maintain a tense, deafening silence, layering it with so much depth and grief: it was phenomenal.
Sharon Sexton as Lucille Larusso played the perfect ‘Jersey mom’ character. Her performance was outstanding throughout, with her vocals being a highlight of the show in its entirety. Her character has a strong similarity to the mums from ‘Dear Evan Hansen’ with the opening number, ‘Rewrite My Story’, being reminiscent of ‘Anybody Have A Map?’, and it was traversed well by Sexton. I also thought her emotional delivery was spectacular.
Abigail Amin as Ali Mills did a good job at representing a youthful ‘girl-next-door’, and showed a high level of theatrical professionalism. However, I felt that Mills’ songs were not quite suited to Amin’s voice and were typically the less interesting songs of the show.
Joe Simmons capably performed as Johnny Lawrence, with ‘Typical Ali Mills’ turning out to be one of my favourite songs of the show (I must admit, I am a fan of boyband-esc numbers). I would’ve liked to see more variation in his emotional delivery, as it felt slightly one-dimensional.
Matt Mills as John Kreese did a superb job, with plenty of stage presence and some incredible vocals. The plotline surrounding the Vietnam war was well-executed by Mills, but similarly to Simmons I felt that a lot of Kreese’s character was just a reflection of ‘anger’.
The ensemble was another standout for me. Although there were moments where it was somewhat unclear whether they were meant to represent real people or a ‘moving presence’, their harmonies were beautiful and their dance abilities were beyond stellar. I myself am a big supporter of having the ensemble on stage more, rather than less, frequently, and Karate Kid really does utilise this group of triple-threats without it feeling overdone. I particularly enjoyed the ensemble moving set, limiting the amount of blackouts. There was not one person out of place, which made for a satisfying watch.
Shoutout also to the stage team who were almost undetectable amongst the movement, especially because they too were in costume, which really kept audiences in the zone.
The band, led by MD and Keys I, Chris Poon, was really impressive. Even though only a few people were sitting in the pit, the music had a consistently full sound. Some scenes could have used with more ambient sound, but when called upon, the band’s performances were outstanding.
The technical side of the show is what I was less convinced about. On one hand, the wardrobe, lighting design and set pieces were designed to perfection. One of the main reasons ‘Strike First. Strike Hard. No Mercy’ was such a strong number was due to the onstage mirrors, bold red lighting and Cobra Kai gis. I also found the competition scene set to be fun and unique, with the additional lightning and banners creating an immersive experience.
On the other, the main set pieces, the moving screens, were often clunky and loud, which quickly became distracting, rather than a cool novelty. Along with this, I wasn’t a fan of a lot of the projections onto said screens, as they felt like they were making up for lost space when there were few people on stage – most notably during the Halloween scene and arcade scenes.
After the lights cut to black and relit for the cast’s joyful bows, it was evident the delight was felt not only by my partner and I who were watching, but the whole theatre, with the roaring claps from the audience being wholly justified.
The Karate Kid – The Musical is running from Tuesday 7th July to Saturday 11th July at the Sheffield Lyceum, with tickets and more information available at https://www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk/events/the-karate-kid-the-musical The UK tour will then continue until September 2026, after which it will make its Canadian premiere, with information available at https://www.thekaratekidthemusicaluk.com/
Reviewer: Natalia Prucnal
Reviewed: 7th July 2026
North West End UK Rating:
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